Sept. 16: An extended visit of the Games Village here on Thursday allayed apprehensions about its preparedness for the upcoming Commonwealth Games, after numerous deadlines set by the Organising Committee and the Delhi government had come and gone.
The gates of the sprawling Village near the Akshardham temple, that will accomodate athletes and officials from 71 participating countries, were thrown open to the media for the first time as part of the soft launch that precedes the arrival of the athletes next week.
The occasion also saw the arrival of mission heads from five countries — Australia, England, Scotland, Wales and New Zealand — here to ascertain the logistics of their contingents’ stay at the Village.
Contrary to reports, England’s chef de mission Craig Hunter, who is part of an eight-member delegation, felt that the Village offered better accommodation than the one provided at the Beijing Olympics.
“It is spectacular. The facilities here are world class and seem to be one notch better than Beijing during the Olympics. You should be proud of what you have got. This is like you have thrown a challenge at us for London Olympics,” Hunter said. “We visited the rooms where our team will stay and found them spacious and comfortable. The apartments are well furnished and of high quality. The surroundings are lush and beautiful. I have seen other Games villages where there were one bathroom for four athletes. Here two athletes share one bathroom. Also, to have such a training facility at the Village itself is amazing,” Hunter added.
The complex consists of 34 residential towers (varying from six to nine stories), a training facility for four disciplines — athletics, swimming, wrestling and weightlifting — and an operational zone comprising of a shopping centre, kitchen, dining rooms and a specialised parking lot among others.
Hunter also put to rest the rumours that various international athletes had pulled out of the event due to concerns over security and a possible dengue outbreak.
“Security was never an area of concern for us. There are problems wherever you travel in the world. Security is an integral part of every Games after the 1972 Munich Olympic disaster. It is part of the preparation.
“Today also we had a long meeting on security with the OC alongside other international delegates and I must say we do not have any apprehensions about it,” he said. “I am confident that no athlete has pulled out due to security problems. The complexity of the international calendar has forced them to opt out of this event. We will be having our largest contingent comprising 560 individuals here for the event,” he added. Hunter said that double Olympic champion swimmer Rebecca Adlington and Beijing Olympics silver medallist triple jumper Phillips Idowu are some of the star England athletes who will be seen in action in Delhi.
Asked about the country’s concern about dengue, Hunter said: “I have been told that the OC are fogging the Village and also spraying insecticides to ensure a safe stay for everyone.”