CWG Day 9: Canada moves closer to top three

ATHLETES’ VILLAGE, NEW DELHI:
The Commonwealth Games athletics programme drew to a close on Day 9 with Australia acquiring 68 golds, while India and England remained only two golds apart.

8:40pm

Nigerian Osayemi Oludamola was stripped of the women's 100 metres Commonwealth Games gold medal on Tuesday after her B sample confirmed a positive test for a banned stimulant, the Games Federation said, AFP reports.

Compatriot Samuel Okon, who also tested positive for methylhexaneamine, waived his right to have his B Sample tested and has also been disqualified from the Games and his 110m hurdles result nullified, a statement said.

Meanwhile Singapore scored a top two podium finish, taking gold and silver in the Commonwealth Games table tennis mixed doubles.

Second seeds Yang Zi and Wang Yuegu beat favourites Gao Ning and Feng Tianwen in straight sets in the final while England's Paul Drinkhall and Joanne Parker won the third place play off.

8:00pm

Australia won the Commonwealth Games Rhythmic Gymnastics team gold on Tuesday.

India defeated England 5-4 on penalties in a high-voltage but controversial Commonwealth Games hockey semi-final on Tuesday to book their maiden appearance in the gold medal match.

6:45pm

Taking major sporting events to new countries will present challenges but is essential to inspire youngsters to take up sport, London Olympic chief Sebastian Coe said at the Commonwealth Games on Tuesday.

The Delhi Games, the first large multi-sport Games held in India since the 1982 Asian Games, have been beset with infrastructural and organisational problems before and during the 12-day event.

As the man in charge of delivering the 2012 London Olympics, twice Olympic champion Coe knows all about the complexities of putting together a large sporting event.

"People shouldn't underestimate how difficult it is to organise at this level and I think they've done a pretty good job," he told Reuters in an interview.

"If we think it is worth building a global capacity in sport, and we think that that global capacity will encourage young people to get involved in sport and healthy lifestyles, then occasionally you have to take those sports out of their comfort zones," he added.

"That's clearly not going to be without its challenges but I think that is worth doing."

Coe, whose grandfather was Indian and who still has relatives in the city, said he had received largely positive feedback about the Games from athletes in Delhi.

6:30pm

Canada on Tuesday won the men's 3m springboard synchro title, giving Alexandre Despatie his ninth Commonwealth Games diving gold.

Meanwhile, Kenya's Silas Kiplagat powered to the men's 1,500m gold medal at the Commonwealth Games, crossing the line in 3:41.79 seconds.

5:45pm

England won the Commonwealth Games both men's and women’s 4x100m relay gold medals on Tuesday, crossing the line in 38.74 seconds and 44.19 seconds respectively.

Meanwhile, New Zealand won a record fourth consecutive gold in the Commonwealth Games rugby sevens, defeating rivals Australia 24-17 in a closely fought final.

Also, Jennifer Abel won the Commonwealth Games women's 1m springboard diving, as Canada added another gold to its collection.

3:45 pm

BBC blogger James Pearce talks to CWG chief Suresh Kalmadi and marvels at his confidence:

What stands out more than anything else is Suresh Kalmadi's confidence - the confidence of a man who wields the power that comes with the title of chairman of the Commonwealth Games organising committee.

As he walked towards the television camera, which we had set up outside his house for the interview, he looked at me, pointed at his manicured lawn and proclaimed: "This is the finest garden in the whole of Delhi."

When you have faced the level of international criticism that has been hurled in the direction of the Delhi organising committee over the past few months, confidence is probably an essential characteristic.

What stands out more than anything else is Suresh Kalmadi's confidence - the confidence of a man who wields the power that comes with the title of chairman of the Commonwealth Games organising committee.
As he walked towards the television camera, which we had set up outside his house for the interview, he looked at me, pointed at his manicured lawn and proclaimed: "This is the finest garden in the whole of Delhi."
When you have faced the level of international criticism that has been hurled in the direction of the Delhi organising committee over the past few months, confidence is probably an essential characteristic.

Kalmadi admitted to me that there had been times recently when he thought that some countries would boycott the Games. In fact, during the course of our 20-minute interview that was the only time when he showed any sign of fallibility, of accepting that this event had been in any danger of not turning out the way he had planned.

There is no doubt that there are some genuine positives in the organising committee's pluses and minuses columns. For example, during our interview with Kalmadi, we hardly touched on the issue of security. There did not seem to be much point as the security operation here has gone according to plan so far. Considering all the fears that had been raised before the Games - and I do not want to tempt fate by saying too much prematurely - keeping the athletes and spectators safe in Delhi would have to rank as the most important achievement.

3:20 pm

South Africa finishes fifth in the CWG men's hockey on Day 9 after scoring a golden goal after the game against Pakistan had finished tied at 2-2.

2:00 pm

In a report titled "The good, bad and ugly",  CWGDelhigames.info talks about the highs and lows of the CWG:

First, what’s good about it.

The opening ceremony: Around 7,000 artists put up a spectacular display of Indian art and culture, making for a grand welcome for the 6,000 Games athletes and delegates. The three-hour-long show saw a giant airostat float above the crowds in the night air, reflecting iconic images of Mahatma Gandhi, the Taj Mahal and the Buddha. As the crowds at Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium went wild with enthusiasm, millions felt proud just watching it on television.

Food: Paranthas, pastas, Punjabi dishes and vegetable biryani at the Games Village are giving everyone a high. CWG Federation chief Mike Fennell has been all praise as have the participants been. A mini ‘Chandni Chowk’ dishing out the snacky street flavours of old Delhi gave an upset belly to some, but overall the elaborate menu has enthused.

Next, the bad.

Delays: The delay in completion of Games work, last-minute glitches and shortcomings that dogged the event right until they began were a major embarrassment. The collapse of a bridge outside the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium attracted the worst criticism.

Last-minute hygiene issues at the CWG Village, complete with loitering dogs and snakes, prompted the international media to dub India as unprepared.

Traffic: Clogged roads were the worst part for Delhiites. With a whole lane dedicated to vehicles for CWG athletes and delegates, traffic moved at a snail’s pace. While the fear of high fines kept many out, some took the opportunity to slip into dedicated lates when no one was watching – or so they thought. There were over 1,600 ‘challans’ or fines by Sunday.

Public transport: With the Delhi government encouraging the use of public transport but at the same time taking 1,500 private blueline ones off the road, the masses had to bear the brunt of overcrowded DTC buses.

Now for the ugly.

Bad press: Continuous criticism from the Western media has dogged India, which is now putting up a good show at the Games. Australia is where many negative stories erupted from. Swimmers even complained of a stomach bug here even as Village authorities issued denials.

Racism: Racist comments have made their way into the Games. South African swimmer Roland Schoeman described the crowds as ‘monkeys’ for shouting continuously. An English official used an expletive against Indian archery head coach Limba Ram in two different incidents. Then again a New Zealand TV anchor made fun of Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit’s name.

1:45 pm

Scotland's Jonathan Hammond and Neil Stirton win the gold medal in the men's pairs 50m Rifle Prone event at the CWG on Day 9.

12:20 pm

England's Tom Daley and Max Brick on Day 9 won the CWG men's 10m synchronised platform diving gold.

Australia's Matthew Mitcham and Ethan Warren takes silver with Eric Sehn and Kevin Geyson of Canada winning bronze.

12:00 pm

Australia move to the final of the CWG men's hockey on Day 9 after defeating New Zealand 6-2 in the semi-final.

11:25 am

Who's saying what at the CWG Day 9

"Too bad it is not the 802 metres." - A fast-finishing Diane Cummins of Canada after failing to catch Nikki Hamblin of New Zealand and winner Nancy Langat in the dying strides of the women's 800m, reports AFP.

"It's in your face now. I should have got that medal for England." - Amir Khan's younger brother, Haroon, who fights for Pakistan, after winning a flyweight bronze, sends a message to the England selectors, who snubbed him for the Delhi Games.

"My wife has been telling me 'you're going to win a gold medal'. I didn't believe her but now I'm starting to. She's been a real driving force." - Middleweight boxer Eamonn O'Kane of Northern Ireland on the importance of marital support.

"I feel really good, it's about time I could smile, it is well overdue." - Papua New Guinea coach Pole Kassman after his team defeated India to finish the tournament ranked 11th out of 12.

"It's frustrating - I have nobody here to cheer for me because all the other team members are either tired or have gone to visit the Taj Mahal." - Welsh bowler Rob Weale.

"Let's hope they (Indian government) notice the rugby. We just have to play our best. The crowd was the best thing, the atmosphere, running out in front of home fans, which unfortunately doesn't happen very often." - Indian rugby sevens player Kayrus Unwala on India's inaugural match in the rugby sevens competition at the Commonwealth Games.

"Many shooters will try to overtake me, but I will try my best and they will try their best. If their best overtakes my best, then they will obviously overtake me." - Full bore shooter David Calvert of Northern Ireland tries to clarify the nature of competitive sport.

11:20 am

India's Heena Sidhu and Annu Raj Singh win the gold medal in the women's 10m Air Pistol pairs event at the CWG on Day 9.

11:10 am

Prime time television coverage in Australia could have influenced the bizarre scheduling of the CWG hockey, former Aussie great Rechelle Hawkes said on Day 9, AFP reports.

Hawkes, who led the Hockeyroos with distinction for eight years, said athlete safety should take priority over whether a match is beamed live to prime time audience.

"The scheduling may have been done to suit television audiences off the east coast (of Australia)," she told AFP.

"But you must take into account athlete safety over TV coverage.

"Safety of the player should be paramount. In these conditions the players could get very sick. It (scheduling) could be because the timings are conducive to the audiences in countries like Australia.

"Games can always be telecast later. The message that I want to give out is that we should look after our players first."

The hockey competition, one of the truly world class events in the Games, has seen many of the matches being played in temperatures often hitting the 40 degree mark.

Back-to-back matches, coupled with the heat, has reduced the sport to one of endurance rather than skill, prompting stiff criticism from players and coaches.

Hawkes, who has three Olympic golds (1988, 1996, and 2000) and two in the World Cups, apart from the title triumph in the 1998 CWG, said the scheduling had been unfair to some teams.

"To have games in the middle of the day when the sun is at hottest is inhuman. Some teams have played more games in the morning than others, which is downright unfair.

"Australian women have had three afternoon games, one at 8:30 in the morning and a semis at 11. They have not got a single evening game.

"This makes the playing field uneven. When you play back-to-back matches in this sort of heat and humidity, you don't get time to recover.

"The event should have been scheduled in a way that the majority of games were played in the evening," said the former player who is here as an expert TV commentator.

11:05 am

Scotland's Jen McIntosh wins the gold medal in the women's 50m Rifle Prone event at the CWG on Day 9.

11:00 am

Singapore's Bin Gai and Lip Meng Poh win the men's 25m Standard Pistol pairs event at the CWG on Day 9.

10:55 am

Scotland defeat Trinidad and Tobago 7-0 in a classification game on Day 9 to finish ninth in the CWGs men's hockey.

10:45 am

Nigerian CWG 110m hurdler Samuel Okon has failed a drugs test, it was announced on Day 9, becoming the second athlete from the African nation to return a positive test in New Delhi, Reuters reports.

Okon, who finished sixth in the 110m hurdles final, tested positive for the banned stimulant methylhexanamine, said Mike Fennell, the Commonwealth Games Federation president.

On Day 8, it was revealed that Nigeria's women's 100m gold medal winner Osayemi Oludamola had also tested positive for the same substance.