New Delhi:
In a boost to the controversy-marred event, the Australian and New Zealand Commonwealth Games bosses on Friday confirmed participation of their teams in the Delhi Games, giving a thumbs up to the much-criticised Athletes' Village.
The decision of the two teams comes after uncertainty over their participation with the Australian Olympic Committee even questioning the wisdom of the event being awarded to Delhi while New Zealand had said it would take one more day to decide.
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After a visit this morning to the Village which had come under attack from various quarters over sanitary conditions, Australian Commonwealth Games Association chief Perry Crosswhite said his country was happy with the Village and that their athletes are looking forward to the Games beginning October 3.
"We are quite happy with the Village and we are looking forward to the Games. The Australian contingent is coming," he said.
"Absolutely, it's thumbs up to the Games," he said, when asked about his assessment of the Games.
Crosswhite was one of the strongest critics till recently about the preparations for the mega event.
After days of indecision, New Zealand Olympic Committee on Friday confirmed participation in the Delhi Commonwealth Games after seeing positive steps being taken by the organisers to improve the situation.
New Zealand Olympic Committee board gave its nod for the planned departures from September 28 after being briefed by NZOC President Mike Stanley and Secretary General Barry Maister, who were in Delhi to take stock of the situation.
Staneley said the situation was grim but it has started changing following intervention by the state and the central governments.
In Sydney,
Australian Olympic Committee President John Coates said India should never have been awarded the hosting rights of the Commonwealth Games given the shoddy preparations that have marred the build-up to the October 3 to 14 event
"In hindsight, no, they shouldn't have been awarded the Games," Coates was quoted as saying by 'The Australian Associated Press'.
Delhi is racing against time to be ready for the Games after several missed deadlines and allegations of inefficiency and corruption against the organisers severely dented its image as an international sporting venue.
Coates said the Commonwealth Games Federation could have been more actively involved in the preparations.
"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 the Olympic Committee does," he said.
Coates said had the International Olympic Committee been involved, the work would have been monitored better.
"If that had been the case here in Delhi, then certainly something would have been done a lot sooner because obviously the venues are not ready," he said.
"You can't ever cut any slack when your focus should be on the best conditions for the athletes," he added.
But Coates refused to say whether participating nations should pull out of the Games, which are already short of star power after several high-profile withdrawals such as Usain Bolt, Chris Hoy and Asafa Powell.
"I'm certainly not going to be drawn into making a commentary on whether Australia and other countries should pull out from this part of the world," he said.