Delhi 2010 CWG: England athletes arrive in New Delhi, to stay at hotels – Canadians also coming on Sunday
After initially delaying its athletes’ departure to New Delhi in the face of hygiene and safety concerns, Commonwealth Games England has finally announced that the athletes would participate in the Delhi 2010 Commonwealth Games; however, they will not lodge
in the Athletes’ Village. Instead, they would be given temporary accommodation in the hotels.
The first contingent of English athletes landed in the Indian capital today, the 24th of September. Athletes will check-in in New Delhi’s hotels and lodge there until their blocks in the Athletes’ Village are improved.
The 22-member contingent, which had flown from London’s Heathrow airport for New Delhi last night, included the hockey and lawn bowling teams. The chef de mission of Team England, Craig Hunter told the media that as the Games Village has been described as
being a filth dump and inhabitable, the country’s athletes will be living at the hotels for at least some days until their blocks are ready.
Craig maintained that he wants his athletes to rest and stay at the hotels until they are over their jet lag and then move to the Village if the conditions there are satisfactory. Meanwhile, England’s hockey team head coach, Jason Lee has said that his team
members are mostly calm despite the troubled description of the security and hygienic conditions. But, he added that still, there are some players in his team who have serious concerns.
Moreover, Canadian officials have also announced that their athletes will start leaving for New Delhi from Sunday. The director of Sports at Commonwealth Games Canada, Scott Stevenson, told the reporters that the progress being made at the venues is commendable.
If it is sustained and the Games aren’t confronted by any other issues, then they would surely be an undoubted success.
Currently, there is huge international pressure on the organizing committee while the Indian Prime Minister, Manmohan Singh, has himself taken notice of the issues confronting the preparations. The organizing committee officials justify their efforts by
saying that India saw the heaviest monsoon rainfall this season which hindered the procedural works and construction of the venues. They also believed that the media was amplifying the issue unnecessarily.
Despite all, this fact cannot be denied that the mess created has caused India disgrace, which could have easily avoided, had there been a show of responsibility on the part of the Indian government.
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