RIO DE JANEIRO -- Copacabana Beach is an Olympic construction site. Cody Ford Youth Jersey . The beach volleyball venue is going up, broadcast studios rise on scaffolding above the sand and a mammoth tent is jammed with thousands of pricey souvenirs.But there are few signs across town in crumbling, working-class areas that the Rio de Janeiro Olympics open in just a month.Promises that hosting the Games would remake even Rios most ramshackle neighborhoods have been eclipsed by myriad problems: security threats and soaring violence, the Zika virus, slow ticket sales, and water pollution in venues for sailing, rowing and distance swimming.Hanging over it all is the impeachment trial of President Dilma Rousseff, expected to start days after the Olympics end.Where I live, we dont see changes like these, said Julia Alves, an 18-year-old student speaking in the citys renovated port area. She was among almost a dozen people asked by The Associated Press how the games would change the city -- or individual lives -- in interviews at the port, outside the Olympic Park and on the streets in a working-class neighborhood.They are things for foreigners, Alves added.Rios organizers have budgeted about $2 billion for operations. In addition, another $10 billion-$12 billion in public and private money is being spent on urban transportation projects driven by the Olympics.Rio has installed new high-speed buses and a light-rail system to serve downtown. And theres a still-unfinished $3 billion subway line extension to connect the upscale Copacabana and Ipanema beach areas with the western suburb of Barra da Tijuca -- site of the Olympic Park. Its unclear if the subway line will be running when the Summer Games open on Aug. 5.The public-works splurge has generated civic pride, suspicion and some anger.The Olympics are bringing an incomparable legacy, in regard to the changes in the citys infrastructure, said Marco Araujo, a 48-year-old badminton coach speaking outside the Olympic Park. We are still working on these projects. But I think that once they are completed, these projects will benefit the population.A bike lane, suspended high above the sea and built as an Olympic legacy project, collapsed in April and killed two.The Olympics touch mostly the wealthy areas south and west of the city, where the real estate market was booming until a few years ago. Rios northern favelas, the citys infamous slums, feel only a ripple, underscoring the vast gap between the rich and poor -- the white, brown and black, in a divided city.Maria da Penha is bitter. Her home in a favela abutting the Olympic Park, known as Vila Autodromo, was demolished to make way for new construction.For me the Olympics were awful, said the 53-year-old, who led a yearlong eminent-domain battle against Rio Mayor Eduardo Paes. They destroyed my life, my dream. I had my own house and I wont have it anymore.Then she added: But it (Olympics) is a very cool event. Brazilians are athletic. We like sports. I just didnt imagine that the Olympics in my country would be so expensive. The truth is I think my country was not prepared to host the Olympics. That is the great truth.Raquel Oliveira, a 25-year-old publicist, spoke while waiting for a bus on a busy road in front of the Olympic Park. She complained bus routes have been changed, reportedly a security move to make it difficult for criminal gangs to access upscale areas.In reality, it didnt change for the best because a lot of bus lines got cut, she said. I have to wait for hours and I live in front of the Olympic Park. I really hope things will improve with the express-bus system or something like that.In a poll published Sunday in the Rio newspaper O Globo, 49 percent of Rio residents said they were in favor of the Olympics, and 61 percent said they would be successful. Asked what could make the games a failure, 85 percent said the lack of security.The poll size was 2,400, but the newspaper did not give the margin of error.Wolfgang Maennig, an Olympic gold-medal rower who studies the economics of the games at Hamburg University, said the Olympics usually produce a feel-good factor when they get going. But he was unsure about Rio.For 17 days, its normally a honeymoon, he said. But you never know what will happen in the case of Rio. Im not sure it will be a typical Brazilian Samba or Carnival atmosphere, but Im sure it will be better than normal, or better than now.Gustavo Nascimento, Rios venue management director, promises everything will be ready. He said a massive cleanup of the venues is set for July 15, and athletes are to have access to the venues on July 24.He also said ticket sales are slow.There are still tickets available, very, very high-quality tickets, he said.About 10,500 athletes and up to 500,000 foreigner visitors are expected for the games.Few will see the real Rio, where the poor are being pummeled by Brazils worst recession since the 1930s, soaring crime and unemployment over 10 percent. Most cant afford an Olympic ticket or a $100 souvenir soccer ball emblazoned with the Olympic logo.Australia and several countries have instructed their athletes to stay away from favelas.Mayor Eduardo Paes, who initially bragged about using the games to push pet projects, has backed away from those promises.You cant expect the Olympics to solve all the social problems here, he said. We are not a city like London or Chicago. You cant expect as much from us.IOC member Carlos Nuzman, the president of the organizing committee, has stuck to his guns, saying repeatedly: Rio will be the Olympic city with the greatest transformation. He said residents are the ones who will get the most from the games.Oliver Stuenkel, who teaches international relations at the Getulio Vargas Foundation -- a Brazilian university -- said politicians view the games as an amazing place to gain visibility and bolster their careers.If its not a catastrophe, the Olympics could provide Brazil with greater legitimacy, Stuenkel told the AP. You bring in a lot of people from around the world. You have heads of state coming in. It puts you on the map, and if youre doing well, it could have a tremendously positive impact. But it will require a lot to compensate for the negative press that is inevitably going to be out before, during and after the Olympics.Brazilians are also wary of public-works projects, which typically produce only embezzlement and empty promises.People are not against the Olympics, but most people I know are indifferent to the event, or at least very, very skeptical that it will have any tangible effect beyond simply short-term visibility, Stuenkel said.---Stephen Wade on Twitter: http://twitter.com/StephenWadeAP . His work can be found at http://bigstory.ap.org/content/stephen-wade Ed Oliver Jersey . All of the scoring came in the final 20:04. Lucic scored on a power play at 15:46 of the third period, when he tipped a shot over Stars goalie Kari Lehtonen for a 3-1 lead. Tremaine Edmunds Bills Jersey . Still, Brewers manager Ron Roenicke thought taking him out before the fifth inning was an unusual move. "Im looking up at the board and hes got two hits given up and one run, and Im taking him out after the fourth inning," Roenicke said. http://www.shoptheofficialbills.com/ . "It was nerve-wracking, but we pulled through," said Collaros, who threw four touchdown passes to lead the Toronto Argonauts (8-4) to a 33-27 win over the Calgary Stampeders (9-3) in front of 28,781 fans at McMahon Stadium. NEWARK, N.J. -- It didnt take Taylor Hall long to become a fan favorite in New Jersey.Hall scored two power-play goals in a 4:11 span in the second period in his regular-season debut with the Devils and New Jersey posted its first win, a 2-1 decision over the road-weary and penalty-plagued Anaheim Ducks on Tuesday night.If you had gotten three or four it could have been better, Hall said with a big smile. It was a fun night, from the red carpet to the starting ovation, it was a great night. As a team we really wanted to get that first win, get that off our chest. Now we can play as a team. We played a game tonight that is repeatable, and thats the best part about it.Having Hall step up was big as New Jersey ended a five-game losing streak against Anaheim.It takes the pressure off him after the Devils made a big trade with Edmonton in the offseason to get him. It also allows the team to settle down after a 0-1-1 start in Florida last week.Obviously a big night for him (Hall), said goaltender Cory Schneider, who had 23 saves and forced the Ducks Chris Wagner to lose control of the puck on a second-period penalty shot. Thats great because when he is going, its good for us.Sami Vatanen scored on a power play for Anaheim, which is 0-3-1 in its five-game trip to start the season. John Gibson made 26 saves for Ducks, who played short-handed seven times.We didnt play a very disciplined game, Vatanen said. In the second period and the third, we took way too many penalties. We killed it off pretty well. We had our chances and just couldnt bury (them).Hall, the No. 1 overall draft pick in 2010, tied the game at 1-all, putting the rebound of a shot by Mike Cammalleri into an open net at 12:35. It came after Anaheim killed off the opening part of a two-man advantage only to see New Jersey score 5-on-4.Sometimes when youu have wide open nets like that you can psyche yourself out, Hall said. Tremaine Edmunds Jersey. I wanted to make sure it went in the back of the net. It was a really good feeling.Halls second goal came on a great deflection of a point shot by defenseman Damon Severson at 16:41. Gibson never had a chance.Wagner got his penalty shot near the end of the period but lost control of the puck after making a move on Schneider.I tried to be aggressive, Schneider said. Fortunately, he made one too many moves and it rolled off his stick. It was a bit of a lucky break.Anaheim got a late power play but could not convert.Gibson said the Ducks know its early, but they have to start earning some wins.We cant go out there and expect to win and expect it is going to change, he said. The league is too good. Every team is too good.Vatanen had given Anaheim the lead at 9:03 of the first period with a shot from the right circle. The Ducks never let the Devils clear the puck out of their zone after Kyle Palmieri was called for tripping at 7:15.New Jersey was 0 for 5 on the power play in its first two games in Florida against the Panthers and Lightning.Devils rookie defenseman Johann Auvitu lost an apparent game-tying goal early in the second period when Reid Boucher was whistled for a high stick against defenseman Kevin Bieksa seconds before the puck went in the net.Game notes Devils F Sergey Kalinin (illness) is practicing again. He was placed on IR before the season. ... Vatanens goal gave him 100 career points. ... The game opened with a short fight between the Devils Vernon Fiddler and the Ducks Ryan Kesler.UP NEXT:DUCKS: at Philadelphia on Thursday night before heading home.DEVILS: visit Boston Thursday night. Wholeslae Jerseys NFL Jerseys Cheap Wholesale NBA Jerseys Cheap NHL Jerseys Cheap MLB Jerseys Wholesale Soccer Jerseys Cheap College Jerseys Cheap Football Jerseys Cheap Basketball Jerseys Cheap Baseball Jerseys ' ' '