OLYMPIC officials have confirmed that the stray bullet which landed in the Media Centre at Deodoro Park on Saturday was fired from a favela at a police blimp in the sky overhead.

The police blimp is a drone used for security surveillance in the area and is clearly visible from the cross-country course at Deodoro.

Overlooking the cross-country course is a favela, or shantytown, built on one of the surrounding hills.

While the Rio 2016 Director of Communications Mario Andrada was at pains to point out that the Olympic Equestrian Centre was not the target of the bullet, the revelation has done little to assuage some journalists fears about security at the venue.

It is understood that separate enquiries are being made about loud noises resembling gunshots heard during the dressage phase of the eventing competition. It is unclear at this stage whether the sounds are gunshot, fireworks or another sound.

The incident happened around 1 o’clock local time on Saturday, when the stray bullet tore through the roof of the tented building, ricocheted off an upright wall support and then landed on the ground.

Although the Centre was busy at the time, which coincided with a break during the first day of dressage in the eventing competition, no-one was injured.

The Media Centre is a tented structure situated at the rear of the main covered grandstand to the east, while stabling area and cross-country area is several hundred metres to the south.

The bullet landed on the floor close to one of two exit doors in the building and, as the media zone where riders are interviewed after their rounds by waiting press, this is normally a busy area.

Deodoro is a garrison area, surrounded by barracks and firing ranges and it was first thought that the bullet may have originated from army training exercises, an accidental discharge of a gun by the heavily-armed military forces lining the avenues around Deodoro or even a shot from the Olympic shooting competition.