CWG may be called off, says NZ chef de mission

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CWG may be called off, says NZ chef de mission | Commonwealth Games | New Zealand | Indian Express

AUCKLAND: The Commonwealth Games in New Delhi, scheduled to begin Oct 3, is under serious risk of being called off, the New Zealand team's chef de mission Dave Currie said on Tuesday.
The unprepared state of the athletes village has stunned foreign delegates in the Indian capital and there was a mountain to climb to have it ready for its official opening Friday, when the first athletes are scheduled to arrive, Currie said.
Currie has accepted an offer from the Games Organising Committee (OC) to shift from their allocated accommodation - which he described as "substandard" - to another tower in the village premises.
Currie Tuesday said the prospects of the Games being cancelled were now very real.
"That's not a decision that we'll make (alone) but there are some realities. If the village is not ready and athletes can't come, obviously the implications of that are that it's not going to happen," he was quoted as saying by the New Zealand Herald.
"I think they (Commonwealth Games Federation) are in severe difficulties. In the time frame that is left, unless there is tremendous effort and energy and problem-solving ability to get it done, I think it's going to be extremely hard to get across the line.
"They've got a little bit of time but it's kind of two seconds to midnight really."
Currie said the half-built nature of New Zealand's proposed accommodation was "extraordinarily disappointing" to his delegation when they arrived last week.
There was a large amount of post-construction cleanup to be completed, along with issues surrounding cleanliness, plumbing, wiring, internet and mobile phones.
"It's pretty grim really and certainly disappointing when you consider the amount of time they've had to get the village ready for athletes to arrive," he said, noting there was still remedial work to be carried out on their new area.
New Zealand Olympic Committee officials were flying to India Tuesday to inspect the village while Fennell also planned to arrive soon to "assess the situation first hand and provide our member countries and territories with a frank assessment".
Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) president Michael Fennell Tuesday described the village as "seriously compromised".
"Final preparations for the Commonwealth Games Village have been of concern to the CGF since viewing the residential zone along with a number of Commonwealth Games Associations (CGAs) advance parties on September 15th," Fennell said.
Fennell said problems arose due to constant pushing out of building deadlines. Now increased security around the site was slowing the building process.
New Zealand Olympic Committee (NZOC) president Mike Stanley and secretary-general Barry Maister left for New Delhi Tuesday.
Stanley said New Zealand was working with five other nations - England, Scotland, Wales, Canada and Australia - in assessing preparations for the Games. He said the group had voiced their concerns "at the highest possible level".
"What they are frustrated by is not enough action, not enough quick action, to see that, between the time we have now and the athletes coming into the village, or even the opening of the Games, things are going to be ready," he said.
Stanley did not want to speculate on how big a risk there was that the Games might not be able to proceed on time.
"There has always been a chance that something could happen to the Games," he said.

 

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Delhi Games village 'unfit for athletes

BBC News - Delhi Games village 'unfit for athletes'

Sanjoy Majumder explains the problems with the athletes' village
The Commonwealth Games Federation head has demanded the Indian government take immediate steps to improve conditions at the athletes' village in Delhi.

Michael Fennell said advance teams had been shocked by the state of facilities.

Delegates from four teams reportedly described the accommodation as ******, unhygienic and unliveable.

But organisers of the Games, which run from 3 to 14 October, said they would provide an "excellent facility".

New Zealand, Scotland, Canada and Northern Ireland have demanded their teams be put up in hotels if their accommodation is not ready.

Team Scotland said in a statement that on arrival in Delhi last week their officials found "its allocated accommodation blocks were far from finished and in their view, unsafe and unfit for human habitation".

Commonwealth Games England called on Tuesday for "urgent" work on the facilities, raising concerns about "plumbing, electrical and other operational details".

Meanwhile, the Times of India newspaper reported that only 18 of 34 residential towers at the village were complete.

Mr Fennell said he had written to the Indian cabinet secretary urging immediate action, as "many issues remain unresolved" and the athletes' village was "seriously compromised".

He said although advance parties from participating nations had been impressed with the international zone and main dining area, they had been "shocked" by the state of the accommodation itself.

"The village is the cornerstone of any Games and the athletes deserve the best possible environment to prepare for their competition," the Commonwealth Games Federation president added.

Two days before the village officially opens to the first of 7,000 athletes and officials, New Zealand chef de mission Dave Currie warned that organisers would struggle to finish everything in time.

There was even a possibility the Games could be cancelled, he added.

He said toilets in the accommodation were leaking and did not flush, and there were piles of building debris in bathrooms.

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It's pretty grim and disappointing when you consider the amount of time they had to prepare”

Dave Currie
New Zealand chef de mission
Delhiites lose patience
"While cleanliness had been a concern for us, further inspection has revealed some issues with plumbing, wiring, internet access and mobile phone coverage," Mr Currie said in a statement.

He told New Zealand commercial radio on Tuesday: "If the village is not ready and athletes can't come, obviously the implications of that are that it's not going to happen.

"It's pretty grim really and certainly disappointing when you consider the amount of time they had to prepare."

In Melbourne, Australia's chef de mission, retired marathon runner Steve Moneghetti, said the hosts "have got two days to do what's probably going to take about two weeks".

It is the latest embarrassment for organisers, says the BBC's Sanjoy Majumder in Delhi.

The build-up to the Games has been plagued by problems with construction of venues falling behind schedule and allegations of corruption and mismanagement.

But there have also been safety concerns, heightened on the weekend after gunmen on a motorcycle shot and wounded two tourists near Delhi's Jama Masjid, one of India's biggest mosques.

 

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Sanjoy Majumder
BBC News, Delhi
This is the latest embarrassment for organisers of Delhi's Commonwealth Games.

The Games village - made up of several blocks of high-rise luxury flats for the athletes who are due to begin arriving on Friday - was meant to be the event's showpiece.

The chief of the organising committee, Suresh Kalmadi, had said it would be better than the village at the Beijing Olympics.

Now his words are coming back to haunt him. Advance teams have described shocking scenes of flats that still need wiring and plumbing, and a general sense of poor hygiene.

The village itself has been built on the banks of the Yamuna river. Just outside it are pools of green, stagnant water left over from flooding after Delhi's worst monsoon in three decades.

It's a breeding ground for mosquitoes and has raised fears of disease - there have been nearly 100 cases of dengue fever over the past month.

The organisers now certainly have their work cut out.

 

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Games Village ******, uninhabitable: Hooper

The Hindu : News / National : Games Village filthy, uninhabitable: Hooper

Piling on the embarrassment for the organisers, Commonwealth Games Federation Chief Executive Mike Hooper on Tuesday termed the Athletes Village as “****** and uninhabitable” but hoped that with CGF President Michael Fennell’s intervention, the mess would be sorted out in the next two days.

“Predominantly the issue is of cleanliness of the towers in the residential zone. The matter came to our attention when we paid a preliminary visit to the Games Village on September 15 along with some representatives of the advanced parties of Commonwealth Games Associations (CGA),” Mr. Hooper told reporters at a press conference here.

“Ever since Sep 15, we along with CGAs met on daily basis. We also held meetings with OC officials and emphasised the importance of addressing the issue of cleanliness of the Village, which I have to say in many towers are ****** and uninhabitable as stated by Mr. Fennel,” he added.

Mr. Hooper’s comments came after an advanced party from New Zealand, Canada, Scotland and Ireland raised serious concerns regarding the hygiene in the residential zone of the Games Village.

No sooner it came to light, CGF President Fennell came out with a strongly-worded statement, wherein he criticised the Organising Committee for the mess and said he had written to the Cabinet Secretary K.M. Chandrasekhar, expressing his concerns about the athletes accommodation.

Mr. Hooper, however, hoped that with Mr. Fennell’s intervention the matter would be resolved at the earliest.

“As a consequence of that, I informed the matter to Mr. Fennel and he took up the matter with higher authorities in India. Basically, we needed to elevate this matter further to ensure the athletes get what they deserve, which is a Village that provides them the best-possible environment to prepare for the Games,” he said.

“Hopefully, with Mr. Fennell’s intervention, asking for direct intervention from the Indian government, the problem will be fixed. Hopefully, we will see some significant action and progress in the next two days.

“(OC chairman) Mr. (Suresh) Kalmadi told me that the Cabinet Secretary was at the Village this morning. It shows that clearly he has taken the matter extremely seriously,” Mr. Hooper added.

With just 12 days to go for the Games, the CGF CEO said the incident did not come as a positive advertisement for the Games, the countdown to which has been marred by corruption allegations and construction delays.

“It would be fair to say that we are extremely disappointed to find ourselves in the situation we are in right now with only two days before the athletes start arriving,” Mr. Hooper said.

“We were given promises that these would be remedied by September 19. It is fair to say that there was some progress but it is certainly insufficient to satisfy the majority of CGAs who are currently here.”

Mr. Hooper also said the CGF stands by its statement that the international zone of the Village, which was soft launched last week, is of world class standard.

“I stand by my statement that the international zone is fantastic. It has got a lot of accolades from different CGA members.

“But what we said in relation to the Village was that it has the potential to be the best Village we ever had,” he added.

 

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With a thumbs-up, guess who holds India hand? Pak


Mon, Sep 27 06:02 AM
The Malaysian and Botswanian teams today joined the ranks of those complaining against the state of affairs in the Commonwealth Games Village, while the South African envoy cried "a threat to the lives of athletes" after a snake was found in one of the rooms allotted to the country's sportspersons.

However, there was good news on at least one front for the beleaguered Commonwealth Games officials: Pakistan. Not only have officials from the country given a thumbs-up to the arrangements and security preparedness for the Games, but also accused "Westerners" of being overly critical.

"We have been given complete assurance by the organisers and our security liaison officer is in India at the moment. We trust the Indian government to provide full protection, and we have no security concerns. Hopefully our entire 75-member contingent will be in India on the 29th as planned," Pakistan Olympic Association president Syed Arif Hasan told The Indian Express on Sunday.

In present times, Hasan noted, no country can assure completely incident-free events, except guaranteeing foolproof security. "We have had teams in India before and not had any problems," he said.

While Hasan added that "it would have obviously been better if the infrastructure had been ready in advance", he said he understood that there could be delays. "We have also had floods and a lot of rain, and the country is reeling under its effects. So nature cannot be predicted or controlled. Even in Athens there were concerns till the last minute but the Olympics went off brilliantly," the Pakistan Olympic Association chief said.

Chaudhary Muhammed Asghar, secretary of the Pakistan Wrestling Federation, saw in the criticism the inability of "Europeans and Australians to accept the fact that India has not only been awarded the Games but that it will also manage to hold them properly".

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With a thumbs-up, guess who holds India hand: Pak

"They have always had a problem with any organisational success in India or Pakistan. Even in cricket, they had a problem initially. And it is unfortunate that we Asians, on our part, seem to hold their opinion in high esteem," he said. "Inshallah, the Games will be a huge success."

Asghar will arrive on Monday to take charge of the ground situation, including accommodation.

Pakistan hockey's star striker Rehan Butt said that whether it was india or Pakistan, the foreign media had the tendency to blow up negative things and ignore the positives.

"It's not like things are perfect elsewhere. As a international player, I have experienced Games villages at several events and in various countries and I can say that though things are generally ready in advance, it doesn't mean they are all perfectly done or managed," he said.

"For all those cribbing right now about the facilities, they must be asked about the facilities provided at the 2002 Melbourne Games, which were far from satisfactory."

Butt also felt that the West should understand that any country hosting a major event for the first time needed to be encouraged, and not pulled down.

Saying his players were all set to leave for the Games, Pakistan Tennis Federation Secretary Major Rashid Khan pointed out that they had never encountered any problem in India. "We have Aisam-ul-Haq playing in India often, and Aqeel Khan has travelled umpteen times. We have never had a problem. We have full faith in Anil Khanna (All India Tennis Association secretary general) and the Indian government, and there are absolutely no concerns."

Criticising the "superiority complex" of the Europeans, he said they travel all over the world but have complaints only when they come to this part of the world. "Unhe machhar bhi dikhne lagte hain, safai se bhi problem hone lagti hai, khane ki bhi problem ho jati hai, mausam me kharabi milti hai (They start seeing mosquitoes, having problems with the cleanliness, the food, the weather...).