England denies Games pullout
Press reports that England are poised to withdraw from next year's
Commonwealth Games in New Delhi over security fears were denied on
Wednesday by Games officials here and in India.
The Daily Telegraph, quoting unnamed sources, said police and
security advisers fear the England team will be targeted by Pakistani
militants and feel the safety of athletes cannot currently be
guaranteed.
There is therefore "virtually no chance" of England sending a team,
in what would be the first time that England has not competed in the
80-year history of the Games, to be held in New Delhi in October, said
the paper. But Commonwealth Games England chief Ann Hogbin said: "That
is definitely not the case. Our current and strong intention is to field
a team for the Games in Delhi next year.
"Of course, we have a duty of care to the athletes and other team
members which we take very seriously. "Despite having been given
extensive briefings from relevant authorities we have not received any
indication that we should not participate in the Games and we will
continue to work hard to put in place the best possible arrangements for
our team."
Responding to the Telegraph report, the Foreign and Commonwealth
Office (FCO) said it "has not advised any of the British teams" against
competing in the Games. "We are aware that the Commonwealth Games
Federation had some concerns about preparations for the Games," it added
in a statement.
"We continue to work closely with the Indian authorities who are
doing everything they can to ensure a safe and secure Games." In New
Delhi Indian Games officials insisted that all countries involved in the
event were satisfied with the security arrangements despite a host of
militant attacks in recent years, most notably an assault on Mumbai last
year that left 166 people dead. "The security commanders meeting was
held at the home ministry recently and all Commonwealth Games
Associations were satisfied with the security arrangements," top Games
official Suresh Kalmadi said in a statement.
The 70,000-member Delhi Police, which is responsible for providing
overall security, said it has already briefed the organisers of the
October 3-14 event, which involves 6,000 international athletes
competing in 17 sports.
The Telegraph report comes after the England badminton team pulled
out of the world championships in India in August, saying security in
the host city of Hyderabad was lax, and sparking criticism that they
were overreacting.
Paul Stephenson, the Metropolitan Police Commissioner, visited the
Indian capital earlier this month to inspect the Games sites and was
said to have voiced "serious concerns" about the security arrangements,
the newspaper said. LONDON, AFP. |