India promises safe 2010 Commonwealth Games

NEW DELHI: India's Olympic chief on Tuesday sought to allay security fears at the 2010 Commonwealth Games in New Delhi saying the country was committed to providing a "safe and secure" environment.

Suresh Kalmadi, who heads the organising committee for the Games, emailed participating nations a week after the militant attack on Sri Lankan cricketers in Pakistan.

"May I reassure you that the organising committee and government of India are committed to provide an absolutely safe and secure environment for athletes, officials and visiting dignitaries during the Commonwealth Games," Kalmadi wrote.

"All preparations are going ahead with fullest speed and a never-before experience of participation and pleasure awaits you all.

"I appeal to you to have full confidence in our preparations and stand united to defeat any attempt to destabilize global camaraderie and goodwill."

India's hosting of the event was thrown into question after a delay in building infrastructure and security concerns in the wake of the Lahore and Mumbai attacks.

Australian swimming legend Dawn Fraser has warned that organisers risk "another Munich" if they proceed with the Games, while Sri Lanka cricket coach Trevor Bayliss said on Tuesday that extremists could target the Games.

"There's some big questions to be asked by the governing bodies of all the sports, not just cricket," Bayliss told reporters in Melbourne.

"I think this proves if cricket, which is the number one sport basically on the subcontinent, can get hit, then any sport can get hit and especially any big sporting tournaments or the Commonwealth Games maybe."

New Delhi, which hosted the Asian Games in 1951 and 1982, will hold the Commonwealth Games in October next year.

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Delhi 2010 Games to go ahead: Australian chief

SYDNEY: Australia's Commonwealth Games chief said on Wednesday there was no reason to call off the 2010 Delhi Games in the wake of an attack on Sri Lanka's cricket team in Pakistan.

At least eight people died and seven cricketers were injured when masked gunmen opened fire on the team's buses on the way to Lahore's Gaddafi Stadium on Tuesday.

Australian swimming champion Dawn Fraser called for the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi to be cancelled to avoid "another Munich", a reference to the murder of Israeli athletes at the 1972 Munich Olympic Games by Palestinian extremists.

But the country's Commonwealth Games Association chief Perry Crosswhite, who competed at Munich, said the Lahore attack should not prevent the Delhi Games going ahead.

"Like everyone else I am shocked that they attacked a sporting team, and Pakistan cricket is so popular, for terrorists to do this is almost unheard of," he said.

"(But) we are not saying the Games are going to be cancelled.

"At this stage the Games are on at Delhi 2010 and we have no reason to believe that they won't take place."

Crosswhite added that he believed the Commonwealth Games were a low-priority target because most of the countries involved were developing nations.

The Commonwealth Games Federation would hold a teleconference to discuss security issues "very shortly", and Australian officials would visit Delhi in early April, he said.

"We are looking at new steps to put in place to ensure our athletes are protected," Crosswhite said. "I don't think anyone can guarantee anybody's safety any more."

"But what we can say is that we will make an assessment, that the potential threats are at an acceptable level (at Delhi)," he added.

He said athletes would be informed, and allowed to make their own decision about attending the games if the threat was deemed to be unacceptable.

Source:http://sports.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Delhi-2010-Games-to-go-ahead-Australian-chief/articleshow/4221832.cms