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NZ officials arrive to inspect facilities after complaints

September 22, 2010 16:47 IST
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New Zealand Olympic Committee officials arrived in Delhi to inspect Commonwealth Games facilities and security after their team manager criticised the accommodation in place for athletes.

NZOC president Mike Stanley and secretary general Barry Maister set off for India following chef de mission Dave Currie's disappointment at the state of the athletes' village.

Currie said on Monday the accommodation required "considerable work" before it would be habitable.

The New Zealand team were moved following their concerns over the cleanliness and amenities in their original housing, though Currie said in a NZOC statement on Wednesday there were still concerns.

"There is still a list of maintenance issues to be addressed," he said. "It's now up to the Commonwealth Games Federation and the Organising Committee to show us they can ready the village in time.

"We're working hard on behalf of our athletes."

Currie will show Stanley and Maister around the village later on Wednesday, while a security assessment will also be carried out.

The NZOC board are to meet in Auckland on Friday to discuss developments with the first New Zealand athletes for the Oct. 3-14 Games due in the Indian capital on Saturday.

Meanwhile, New Zealand's swimming team are seeking a "Plan B" competition with other nations should the Delhi Commonwealth Games be cancelled, the organisation's performance and pathways general manager said on Wednesday.

New Zealand's swimmers left on Wednesday for a training camp in Abu Dhabi before the October 3-14 Commonwealth Games, however should the event be cancelled Swimming New Zealand's Jan Cameron told local media an alternative competition was being discussed with other nations.

"Of course, that's the likely scenario," she said when asked if the Plan B involved other countries and a swim meet elsewhere.

"But at the moment none of us are willing to go down that track other than make sure in the back pocket we have a Plan B," she told Television New Zealand.

Cameron said the plan was just discussions at this stage with Australia, Britain and Canada as they were waiting for notification from the New Zealand Olympic Committee (NZOC) as to whether the team would proceed to Delhi.

"I don't expect it to come to that," she told TV3 News.

"We don't have anything concrete and nor do we want to, but we are ready to move quickly should it come to that."

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Source: REUTERS
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