The head of the New Delhi 2010 Commonwealth Games said the 2010 Games will adopt security methods similar to those used at last year’s Beijing Olympic Games, reports Reuters.
There has been speculation about the fate of the New Delhi 2010 Games due to last year’s attacks in Mumbai and Tuesday’s ambush in Lahore, which left six Sri Lankan cricketers and a coach wounded, and eight dead.
Several Australian athletes – the top team in the games – have expressed reservations about competing in India. Former swimming champion Dawn Fraser has called for the event to be moved. Fraser said, “we don’t want another Munich” referring to the attacks on Israeli athletes at the 1972 Olympics. “With an attack like that you wouldn’t be sending any team over to that region at all. You wouldn’t be sending any away in this climate”.
At a meeting in New Delhi Tuesday held by Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) officials, security was elaborately discussed said organizing committee chairman Suresh Kalmadi.
Kalmadi told Reuters “we’re working on security, it has always been an issue with us from the beginning. The Pune (2008 Commonwealth Youth Games) security was also an issue and everything went off well. We’re tying up things, with a lot of CCTV’s etc. We’re using very modern methods, which were also used in Beijing last year. A lot of things are moving ahead as this our number one concern”, he said, adding “we’re monitoring it on a day-to-day basis”.
The CGF security head has also visited India and discussed security details with the Delhi police and interior ministry officials, said Kalmadi.
