Chad Le Clos’s parents flew into Rio on Tuesday, accompanied by their youngest son, Jordan.

Bert and Geraldine, who have both undergone surgery for cancer in the past two months, were in good spirits.

Geraldine had a double mastectomy while Bert was diagnosed with prostate cancer.

Chad issued a statement last month saying both parents were being treated for the disease and asked for privacy for himself and his family.

Sharing the same SAA flight to Sao Paulo as the Le Clos family were Olympic-bound sportsmen, officials and fans.

South African judoka Zack Piontek, the Commonwealth Games 90kg champion, was among them, as was former tennis ace Jeff Coetzee, who will be in Rio coaching the Colombian team.

Among the passengers was hockey video umpire Deon Nel, who will be in action at the Olympic tournament, which will feature no SA teams for the first time since 1992.

Others on the plane included teams from Zimbabwe and Lesotho.

Sitting next to yours truly was one non-English-speaking gentleman who, when asked by the hostess if he wanted chicken or beef, answered: “Chicken beef.”

Cluck moo?

All the passengers were met with congestion at the Sao Paulo airport — first at passport control and then queueing to catch connecting flights to Rio.

While most of them flew direct to Rio, yours truly flew via Ribeirao Preto, arriving in Rio on Wednesday.