New Delhi:
As venues for international sporting events go, its deviation was far from standard. But with just two days to go before the Opening Ceremony, the Commonwealth Games is now getting passable reviews.
Boxer Akhil Kumar's bed had collapsed - the fag end of a row of debacles that included foreign delegates discovering unflushed toilets and mattresses with footprints of dogs on them. "When we had come initially, the conditions were like that, but a lot of improvement has taken place, and if anything else happens, I will definitely tell you about it," says Kumar.
The verdict from foreign residents is that this is a three-star residence - not the better-than-Beijing complex that organizers had blithely promised just a few months ago when confronted with evidence that the Village was in shambles and nowhere near ready.
As the Indian team-619 members-hoisted the tricolor, they say they want the focus now to be on the Games, not the extensively and internationally-chronicled.
Boxer Vijender Singh promises, "We will definitely try hard as we will have many fans cheering for us."
So far, more than 5400 players and officials have moved into the village. As another 2000 are expected over the next 2 days, the residual dust of controversy seems to be disappearing.