Athletes arrive in New Delhi
The showpiece multi-sport event, set to begin in nine days, had teetered on the brink of collapse on Tuesday when some nations threatened to pull out amid worries about security, a bridge collapse and the state of the facilities.
The Games won a much-needed boost from England and New Zealand, who said they would send their athletes after an earlier warning from England that the competition was on a “knife-edge” as worries grew about Delhi’s readiness.
High-profile athletes continued to pull out, however, including Welsh cyclist Geraint Thomas, an Olympic gold medal winner while Australia’s Olympic Chief John Coates said that the Indian capital should never have been awarded the Games in the first place, adding that the Commonwealth Games Federation was also to blame for the shambolic organisation.
“The Games shouldn’t have been awarded to New Delhi, in hindsight. I think the problem is the Commonwealth Games Federation is under-resourced. It doesn’t have the ability to monitor the progress of cities in the way that the Olympic committee does,” Coates said.
Meanwhile a Canadian sports official said that athletes will only go for the Commonwealth Games when concerns over the athletes’ village cleanliness and safety are addressed.
Several world-class athletes have already pulled out, including Australian world discus champion Dani Samuels, English Olympic gold medallist Christine Ohuruogu and world triple jump champion Phillips Idowu. Three British cyclists have also joined Thomas in deciding to stay at home.
Published in The Express Tribune, September 25th, 2010.
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