In an unusually blunt public warning, a vice-president of the International Olympic Committee on Tuesday called the delayed preparations for the 2016 Games in Rio de Janeiro "the worst I have experienced." John Coates, who has made six trips to Brazil as part of the IOCs co-ordination commission for Rio, said the Brazilians are behind "in many, many ways" and are in worse shape than Greek organizers were in preparing for the 2004 Olympics. Despite the critical delays, the Australian said there is no backup plan and the games will take place in Rio. Coates noted that the IOC had taken the unprecedented step of embedding experts in the host city to help the local organizing committee deliver the games. "The IOC has formed a special task force to try and speed up preparations but the situation is critical on the ground," Coates told an Olympic forum in Sydney, outlining that construction delays are just part of the problem. "The IOC has adopted a more hands-on role. It is unprecedented for the IOC, but there is no plan B. We are going to Rio." Brazil has also come under fire from footballs world governing body, FIFA, for long delays in construction of stadiums and other infrastructure and the overdue delivery of venues for the World Cup, which kicks off in June. Two years out from the 2016 Olympics, the situation on the construction front is just as bleak. "We have become very concerned. They are not ready in many, many ways," Coates said. "And this is against a city thats got social issues that also have to be addressed; a country thats also trying to deal with the FIFA World Cup coming up in a few months." Coates said dealing with three levels of government in Brazil made it harder for local organizers than it was for the heavily criticized organizers of the Athens Games, which were also plagued by construction delays and earned a "yellow light" warning from then-IOC President Juan Antonio Samaranch. "I think this is a worse situation than Athens," Coates said. "In Athens, we were dealing with one government and some city responsibilities. Here, theres three. "There is bureaucracy, there is little co-ordination between the federal, the state government and the city -- which is responsible for a lot of the construction. The flow of funds from the federal government is not happening quickly enough. We think we need to help facilitate that." Coates, who chairs the IOC co-ordination commission for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, said he thinks the IOC has put the message across in Brazil. "We have to make it (the Olympics) happen and that is the IOC approach, you cant walk away from this," he said. "If it comes off -- the first (Olympic) Games on the South American continent, in a magical city in so many ways -- itll be a wonderful experience for the athletes." Work hasnt begun at Deodoro, a complex for eight Olympics sports venues, and the course that will host golfs return to the Olympic program for the first time in more than a century doesnt have grass yet. Water pollution is a big worry for sailing and other sports. Concern over the delays has been building over time but hit crisis levels at the SportAccord meeting in Belek, Turkey, earlier this month. In a rare display of unified, open criticism against an Olympic host, 18 sports federations publicly aired concerns over Rios preparations, with some sports asking about "Plan B" contingencies. The IOC has decided to send a senior troubleshooter, IOC executive director Gilbert Felli, to Brazil as part of a series of emergency measures to tackle the delays threatening the games. Coates said other experienced, high-level staff will soon be appointed. Rio Mayor Eduardo Paes fired back last week at the complaints by sports federations, saying they were making too many unnecessary demands. Paes said the federations were asking for too many "large things" that wont be used by the city after the Olympics. Ito Smith Jersey . Coaches are now allowed to challenge both called and potential defensive pass interference fouls under certain conditions. Isaiah Oliver Jersey . Playing in his fourth major league game, Polanco broke a tie in the 13th inning with his first homer, helping Pittsburgh to an 8-6 victory over the Miami Marlins after the Pirates had a ninth-inning meltdown. http://www.falconsrookiestore.com/Falcons-Ito-Smith-Jersey/ . TSN 1290s Jordan Cieciwa, Big Marv and Toby are here to give their predictions on who will leave with the belt and who will take some of the other key bouts on the card. Johny Hendricks vs. Brandon Fusco Jersey . In question is whether 26-year-old Matt Frattin will be on it. A a€?mediocrea€? training camp, as Carlyle put it earlier this week, has Frattin lingering nervously on the bubble at the end of the exhibition season, pushed out of a likely job by Brandon Kozun, the small, but feisty winger determined to make the NHL for the first time. Calvin Ridley Jersey . Bookies were offering odds of 13/1 before kickoff that the home team Houston Dynamo would prevail by three goals to nil.(SportsNetwork.com) - The Cleveland Cavaliers target their fifth straight win when they resume a four-game homestand Friday versus the Charlotte Hornets. The Cavaliers made it four straight wins with Wednesdays 106-92 victory over the Utah Jazz and were led by LeBron James, who registered 26 points, nine assists and seven rebounds. James, though, had seven turnovers. Kevin Love contributed 19 points and 13 rebounds, Timofey Mozgov added 16 points and 11 boards, and Kyrie Irving netted 18 points for the Cavs, whose winning streak comes on the heels of losing six in a row and nine of 10 games. Its clicking, James said. We have a good groove right now. James has scored 26 points or more in five straight games, posting an average of 30.6 ppg in that span. Cleveland has scored 100 or more points in five straight games and will host the Oklahoma City Thunder on Sunday at the Q. It is 13-9 at home this season. The Cavs could see Iman Shumpert Friday night for the first time since acquiring him in a three-team deal with the New York Knicks and Thunder. Shumpert has been sidelined with a shoulder injury and last played Dec. 12 at Boston. Hee averaged 9.dddddddddddd.3 ppg with the Knicks this season. Charlotte has been playing well of late with three straight wins and eight in the past nine tries. The Hornets went 3-1 on a recent homestand and recorded a 78-76 victory over the Miami Heat on Wednesday, as Kemba Walker scored 15 points on just 4-of-17 shooting. Bismack Biyombo recorded 12 points and 12 boards, Al Jefferson came off the bench to post 12 points and four rebounds, and Michael Kidd-Gilchrist ended with eight points to go along with 14 rebounds. With the Heat trailing by two in the closing seconds, Chris Bosh missed on a 3-pointer from the top of the key. Mario Chalmers tracked down the rebound, and his final shot from the corner missed short. Basketball is a game of runs, said Walker. It was up to us to stay mentally tough, get stops, and make plays on our end. Walker missed the previous two games because of a knee injury. Charlotte had a 56-41 advantage on the glass and shot 33.8 percent. It will host the New York Knicks Saturday night. The Hornets are winless (0-2) against the Cavaliers this season and had won the previous five games in this series. 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