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Led by the IOC's Olympic Games Executive Director, Gilbert Felli, the group from the IOC administration shared with the Rio 2016 Organising Committee and its local partners some of the best practices from previous Games, and laid out the framework of partnership that will guide preparations for the next seven years.

Speaking after the seminar, Felli said: "Organising the Olympic Games is a complex undertaking and it requires great teamwork from everyone involved. This orientation seminar has allowed us to continue to lay the foundation for that collaboration and to build upon the transfer of knowledge that Rio has already benefited from during the bid phase. It was particularly reassuring to see that all levels of government were represented, with Minister of Sport Silva, Governor Cabral and Mayor Paes all taking part. This underlines to us the strong cooperation that exists between the Games stakeholders and the commitment of the country to these Games."

He continued: "The fact that we have been able to come to Rio so soon after its election is a great credit to Carlos Nuzman and all the team at Rio 2016. With such an ambitious project, you cannot afford to lose any time and Rio has avoided this by setting to work again immediately after the vote in Copenhagen. The organisers also need to identify quickly their initial priorities from among the myriad of options that exist and, hopefully, this seminar will help them to make those decisions. We were impressed by the attitude and focus of the participants over the two days and I am confident that they will use what they learned to give us top-quality Olympic Games in 2016."

Carlos Arthur Nuzman, the President of Rio 2016 said: "We began our work whilst still in Copenhagen, less than 24 hours after Rio was declared the host city. This seminar was important, so that we could establish our next steps, further integrate all those involved in the process of organising the Games and align our efforts. It was a very useful and productive meeting, where we were able to learn from the IOC about the experiences of previous organising committees as they prepared for the Games. We thank the IOC for visiting us so soon after our election and for helping to focus our efforts on the essential areas of our preparations."

As part of its Olympic Games Knowledge Management (OGKM) programme, the IOC runs an orientation seminar shortly after the election of each host city. The aim of the seminar is to help the newly elected city make the transition from being a bid into being a Games organiser. It explains in detail the preparation phases and the operations that will need to be finalised over the next seven years, while building upon the transfer of knowledge that the cities receive from the IOC during the bid stages. The seminar also helps the organisers to decide where they should focus their efforts during the start-up phase and is an opportunity for the IOC to share its Games management philosophy with them. This enables everyone to understand what is expected of them and ensures that the collaboration is as efficient as possible right from the outset.