Windsor's Muscat heads to Commonwealth Games

The task was simple for the Windsor Legion’s Megan Muscat.

A win in the women’s T37 100 metres would make her eligible for Canada’s Commonwealth Games team.

Seeded second in the event, the 25-year-old Muscat won the race in 15.74 to edge out longtime rival Leah Robinson by 11/100ths of a second. The Legion’s Virginia Mclachlan earned the bronze in 17.09

“It was a shock to a lot of people,” Muscat said. “I haven’t beaten her since late 2007 or early 2008.”

Muscat’s name was put forward to Athletics Canada for the Commonwealth Games team, along Legion teammate and decathlon champion Jamie Adjetey-Nelson, after Saturday’s completion of the Canadian senior track and field championships in Toronto. The full team will be announced this week.

“It was a seasonal best for me in the 200,” Muscat said of a silver medal won Friday. “It was a personal best in the 100 and I regained my Canadian title.

“It was a little bit shocking, but I knew I could do it.”

While Muscat achieved her dream, a few other area athletes came up short in their bid to go to the Commonwealth Games.

Sudbury native Andrew Ellerton, whose family now calls Windsor home, won the men’s 800 metres in 1:50.83, but fell short of the Commonwealth Games qualifying standard of 1:46.46.

“I wasn’t going to try and take it out and make standard,” said the 26-year-old Ellerton, who is known more for his strong finishing kick. “I don’t run well from the front and I’ve tried it before and it hasn’t gone well. I wanted to make sure I was first.”

Back after missing 16 months with a stress fracture, Ellerton’s main goal wasn’t the Commonwealth Games.

“It would have been great, but this way it doesn’t impact my training,” he said. “My goal is still world (championships in 2011) and (the Olympics in) 2012.”

The Legion’s Derek Watkins was eyeing one last chance for a Commonwealth Games spot. He needed to clear 2.25 metres in the men’s high jump, but had to settle for a silver medal after clearing 2.16 metres.

“I was looking for standard, but I think I might have put a little too much pressure on myself,” the 29-year-old Watkins said. “This season has been my best, no question.

“Now, hopefully, I can get to Pan Am’s next year and then (the Olympics in) 2012.”

Melissa Bishop had the area’s other medal as the University of Windsor student took bronze in the women’s 800 metres in 2:04.12.

The Legion’s Jonathan Reid looked to have won the men’s 400 metres, but was disqualified for running on the lane line.

Windsor’s Noelle Montcalm was fifth in the women’s 100-metre hurdles in 13.64 while incoming Lancer Andy Ysebaert was fifth in the men’s shot put with a throw of 16.33 metres.

The Legion’s Dayna Maaten cleared 3.90 metres to finish sixth in women’s pole vault, Mitchell Tome was eighth in the men’s 800 metres in 1:56.21 and Danielle Harrison was 16th in the women’s 100 metres in 12.44.

India confident of Commonwealth Games' success

With sceptics writing off the Commonwealth Games as an organizational disaster, India's top sports officials have assured the participating countries and the nation that they are ready to host the "best ever" games.

With exactly two months to go for the event, it has been dogged by several controversies up till now with unfinished work, monsoon rains, extended deadlines hovering around.


The government and the organizing committee of the Games have promised to finish all the work in time for the Oct 3-14 event and said will showcase state of the art stadia, foolproof security and modern day transportation systems to the world.

This is the biggest international sporting event that India will host so far. The last big event they had organised was the Asian Games way back in 1982.

Although questions are being raised about delays in the completion of games projects, cost overruns and deals that have attracted adverse media attention, the organising committee is confident of putting up a good show for the Games for which Rs.15,000 crore has been allocated by the government.

"We are fully ready to host the Games successfully," said Lalit Bhanot, Secretary General of the CWG organising committee.

"All our functional areas are fully prepared and in the next two months there will be regular dress rehearsals. I am confident in the next 45 days we will address all the issues that are getting highlighted now. I can say the country will be proud of the conduct of the Games," Bhanot said.

The Games will feature 17 disciplines to be held at six venue clusters and five stand-alone stadia in the metropolis of 17 million people, one of the most crowded in the world. The sale of tickets started in June and 1.7 million tickets are expected to be sold before the Games begin.

On Monday, the organising committee also informally moved into all the stadia -- Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, Major Dhyan Chand National Stadium, Indira Gandhi Sports Complex, Delhi University Sports Complex, Thyagaraj Stadium, Siri Fort Sports Complex, Dr. Karni Singh Shooting Range, Talkatora Stadium, SPM Swimming Pool Complex, R.K. Khanna Tennis Complex, and Yamuna Sports Complex as well as the Full Bore Shooting Range in suburban Gurgaon.

"We have already moved our venue operations teams and they have started working on the overlays. There is no delay on our part. The technical conduct of the Games is our responsibiliy and we are on time," Bhanot said in response to media criticism.

Nevertheless, there are plenty of challenges ahead, independent observers aver.

Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit has inaugurated all the venues, though unfinished work like cabling, landscaping and removal of debris remains. Recent incidents of waterlogging, seepage and even a roof collapse have raised questions about whether the deadline can be met.

The furnishing of apartments, beautification and construction of the approach road is also incomplete at the much talked about Games village situated on the banks of river Yamuna.

The recent report of the autonomous Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) has cast a long shadow. The corruption watchdog has pointed out poor quality of construction material and grant of work to ineligible agencies in several projects. As per the CVC's Chief Technical Examination Wing, large-scale procedural violations, including corruption, have been noticed in 16 projects.

Another scandal surfaced over the award of contract to a company in Britain allegedly without following proper procedures. But CWG organising committee chairman Suresh Kalmadi has vehemently denied all allegations. He said these charges were "baseless" as proper trails existed to establish that all transactions were within law and above board.

But critics - who about in India's contentious society - are having a field day.

Vijay Kumar Malhotra, president of the General Association of National Sports Federations (GANSF), said: "There is a general sense of antipathy, cynicism, concern, worry about the Games. The common man on the street is worried not only about the massive corruption but also about the image of the country."

However, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh himself has shown satisfaction with the progress of work and said the country would be prepared "by the deadline".

"I have reviewed the situation with the cabinet secretary and I am satisfied that all necessary preparations are in place and will be in place by the deadline," Singh said last week at the joint press conference with visiting British Prime Minister David Cameron.

Chief Minister Dikshit has said Delhi will host the best-ever Games and there is no need to panic.

Officials and labourers are racing against time to complete all Games-related projects -- landscaping, plantation, beautification, parking places, footover bridges, roads, renovating markets, hotels and buildings -- to make the capital look like "a world-class city".

India's internal security department under the Home Ministry has also assured participating countries that it will be a "safe and secure" Games.

"We assured them of a safe and secure environment during the event," Neeraj Kumar, special commissioner (administration), said.

Delhi Games in crisis as clock runs down

The Commonwealth Games in New Delhi have been plunged into crisis just two months before the opening ceremony by allegations of corruption, shoddy workmanship and delays in handing over venues.

Monday should have witnessed the final handover -- already twice delayed -- of the venues to the event directors, but four are still under construction and others are the focus of a row over sub-standard work.

The Games, which India had hoped would be a showcase for its emergence as a global economic power, are scheduled to begin on October 3.

The charges of rampant corruption and concerns over the ballooning cost have drowned out increasingly desperate-sounding assurances from top Indian officials, including Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, that preparations are on track.

An Indian anti-corruption body last week reported it had found a host of problems with construction work, including use of poor quality materials and dubious contracts.

The chief technical examiner from the Central Vigilance Commission inspected 15 sites around the national capital and found a number of irregularities and suspect practices by contractors and public bodies.

The Times of India said all construction quality certificates inspected so far had turned out to be fake or "suspect."

Indian media also reported that the British government had raised questions about suspect sums being transferred from the organising committee to a British-based firm.

The reports prompted the chairman of the Games organising committee, Suresh Kalmadi, to address a hurried press conference where he slammed the media for conducting a "prejudiced campaign".

"I wish to state that we have nothing to hide and I stand before you with clear conscience and complete conviction," Kalmadi said.

"We believe in total transparency. The campaign is very demoralising for athletes and officials who have been working day and night for many years now to make the Games a success.

"The need of the hour is to get on with the Games and be united to make this happen. Let not corruption be the only highlight. There are many positive things to write and talk about."

Media coverage has become increasingly negative as the games approach.

The India Today news magazine dubbed the event the "Shame Games" while a recent editorial in The Times of India said it was "in danger of becoming an exhibition of ineptitude and incompetence."

The event involving 71 nations is already the costliest Commonwealth Games in history, with an infrastructure and organising budget of two billion dollars. Unofficial estimates say the cost will be at least three times that amount.

The desperate race to get everything finished in time has been hampered by heavy monsoon rains that have turned worksites across the city into mudbaths and even flooded some of the main venues.

Games Federation chief executive Mike Hooper said Monday he was concerned about the Central Vigilance Commission's report and made it clear that the organisers would refuse to take over suspect venues.

"We will not accept the handover of any venue if appropriate documents are not there attesting that the venues are fit for the purpose," Hooper said.

Opposition parties have seized on the corruption allegations to condemn the government's handling of preparations for the Games.

Police had to use water cannon on Monday to disperse opposition activists who marched to parliament with banners bearing slogans including: "Is it Commonwealth Games or the Loot of the Common Man?"

Other Commonwealth nations have expressed concerns about the situation, although Perry Crosswhite, the chief executive of the Australian Commonwealth Games Association, said he suspected political motives at play.

"It looks like the parties and the government there are having a go at each other and no doubt everybody has got their little axe to grind," Crosswhite said on Monday.

"These things tend to happen before these types of events -- the blame game happens.

ED smells a rat, probes 2 more foreign payouts

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) is investigating money paid by Commonwealth Games 2010 organisers to Switzerland-based Event Knowledge Services (EKS) and an Australian company, Sports Marketing And Management (SMAM), as it’s suspecting money laundering.

For the Youth Games held in Pune earlier this year, the Australian firm had been paid a 15% cut on an estimated sponsorship of $30 million, though almost all the money had been generated from Indian PSUs, including BSNL and SAIL. The sole private sponsor was Coca-Cola .

For CWG 2010, the Australian firm was to get up to 23% commission from revenue being generated from PSUs such as the Railways (Rs 100 crore), Central Bank, NTPC and Air India all pledging Rs 50 crore each.

Interestingly, as per the OC’s contract with SMAM, even though Air India has promised sponsorship in kind by way of providing air tickets equivalent to the pledged amount, the OC on its part will pay SMAM the commission in cash.

EKS has hired Ernst & Young in India to deliver on its obligations to the CWG. As per the contract, its services were to be available only till April 1, 2010 — a good six months before the Games are to begin.

TOI contacted both CWG spokesperson Lalit Bhanot and its public relations wing for a comment as also WSG’s India representative Harish Krishnamachar. Both refused to respond to the queries. Krishnamachar said it was not appropriate for him to answer any query at this juncture. A detailed questionnaire sent to him over email on his request also remained unanswered. Bhanot did not take calls, while the CWG’s PR wing promised to get back but did not do so.

Indian High Commission looking into Kalmadi claims

The Indian High Commission said here on Monday it was “actively'' looking into claims about its officials' role in the controversial hire of vehicles from an obscure London-based company for a Commonwealth Games event last year.

In its first official comment on the affair, the India House said in a statement: “With reference to a press release issued on 1 August 2010, by [the] Organizing Committee of CWG 2010, regarding hire of vehicles from M/s. AM Car and Vans, purportedly at the recommendation of HCI, London, the matter is being actively looked into and further information would be released in due course.''

It has been alleged that the company was paid “lakhs'' of pounds for hiring vehicles and other equipment for the Queen's Baton Relay ceremony held at Buckingham Palace last October.

The Commonwealth Games Organising Committee chairman Suresh Kalmadi claims that the company was hired on the recommendation of the High Commission and on Sunday he released emails purporting to be from Raju Sebastian, a junior High Commission official, in support of his claim.

He said Mr. Sebastian's email was in response to a communication from the Organising Committee to Vikrant Ratan, first secretary (protocol) seeking a list of agencies for hiring transport and other material for the event.

‘‘The OC would like to clarify we had written to Vikrant Ratan, First Secretary (Protocol) of the Indian High Commission, to provide us the list of agencies for transportation, accommodation and other services and their approved rates. In response, Raju Sebastian of the Protocol division of the Indian High Commission, giving reference to our mail to the first secretary Vikrant Ratan, informed the approved vendors for transport are AM Car and Van and the Chauffeur Company,'' he told a press conference in Delhi.

Mr. Kalmadi also claimed that the rates paid to the company were approved by the High Commission. “He [Sebastian] also indicated the approved rates of the High Commission for accommodation and transportation,'' he said.

Delay in printing of manuals affects training of volunteers

Exactly two months to go for the Commonwealth Games 2010 and there seem to be plenty of slip-ups in the run-up. According to senior organizing committee (OC) officials, the training schedule for volunteers the face of the Delhi Games for many is running late. The reason is a shortfall in the number of training manuals available.

Said a senior OC official, "The role-specific training was supposed to start by the beginning of July, once the general training of all 30,000 volunteers got over in June. However, the schedule was affected as there was a shortage of the required training material.'' As a result, the programme, which was to be wrapped up across all 34 functional areas as part of the role-specific training, had to be conducted in stages so that the manual could be made available. Added the official, "Not enough copies of the manual could be printed on time.'' Incidentally, the training manual has been designed by a consortium consiting of Amity and the Event Knowledge Services (EKS), which had been asked to train the volunteers. Amity had, in fact, sponsored the entire training programme.

Talking about the shortage in training manual, the official said that the programme got back on track after extra copies were printed. Sources admitted that delay in finalizing of the tender for the printing job by the OC had led to several such snafus. "However, the training programme is back on schedule now and the venue specific training will also be started soon,'' added the official. Role-specific training has now been started across all those FAs which missed out ealier due to manual shortage, he said.

Incidentally, the general training, which started in June, was also delayed. In Melbourne Games in 2006, for instance, training had taken place almost a year in advance. The programme involves training 30,000 people on not only how to help in conducting an international event but also, how to react in emergency situations.

The delay in starting the programme had been acknowledged as being a matter of concern by Amity's consortium partner, EKS at that time. EKS officials had said that the "timeline has been a challenge... but there are advantages to conducting the training near the event date, since their (volunteers) motivation levels are high.''

Cong demands probe, OC too seeks clarification

The Congress on Monday demanded an investigation into the allegations of corruption in Commonwealth Games projects saying the party would like to know “the truth”.

“We certainly would like to understand the truth of these allegations. The country as a whole and my party would like to know the truth. It is very important that the Commonwealth Games are successfully carried out because they will showcase India’s strength. But complete truth of the matter (allegations) should be brought o public,” AICC spokesperson Jayanthi Natarajan said at the AICC briefing.

Asked how the party proposed to uncover the truth, she said, “through investigations”.

Organising Committee chairman Suresh Kalmadi is also under the fire from his colleagues in the Games panel. OC vice-chairman Randhir Singh and executive board member Vijay Kumar Malhotra have both shot off letters to Kalmadi demanding an early meeting of the executive board. The two have asked Kalmadi to clarify all the allegations.

“There are so many news reports going round about the Organising Committee bungling in various contracts. As board members, it is very important for us to get an explanation. An incisive inquiry should be conducted and the culprit should be punished in case any bungling is found,” Malhotra told Newsline.