A Brazillian lifeguard has been trending worldwide after pictures of him looking bored while Olympic medalists take to the pool was shared thousands of times around the world.

Olympic bosses have defended using lifeguards to protect the worlds best swimmers, saying the law states any pool over a certain size must have a lifeguard on duty.

In total, 75 lifeguards have been hired to protect swimmers at the games.

The issue has also called into question some of the more unusual responsibilities at Rio 2016.

At the Olympic Village, a guy called Eric has been hired to hand out condoms.

And at the opening ceremony, hundreds of dancers wore ponchos with arrows, signposting the route for athletes on the way into the stadium, with some arguing that the job could have been done by a metal pole.