Kipsiro relishes golden race

Uganda's Moses Kipsiro took the first athletics gold of the Commonwealth Games after workers triumphed in their own desperate race to repair the track and get the infield ready at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium.

Wednesday's other big winner was Leisel Jones who grabbed her eighth career Commonwealth Games gold on as six titles in the pool kept Australia clear of hosts India at the top of the medal table on the third day of competition in Delhi.

India's sharpshooters, wrestlers and weightlifters gave the host nation six golds on day three, Gagan Narang and Anisa Sayyid both collecting their second of the Games on the shooting range and an African swimmer won a rare major competition gold for the continent in the pool.

Problems, though, continued to dog organisers but the first evening of the athletics got under way on schedule, albeit in front of a sparse crowd, after an army of workers toiled night and day at the stadium to fix damage caused during Sunday's opening ceremony.

“There was some damage to the athletics track and the in-field was in very poor condition and some general cleaning-up (had) to be done and the workers responded to this overnight,” said Michael Fennell, head of the Commonwealth Games Federation.

Three hours before the eight-day athletics competition began an army of workers was still struggling to prepare the shot put ring, erect the net around the hammer ring, put up hoardings, and assemble the medal podiums.

One group were shovelling buckets of thick mud out of the steeplechase water jump and using a cycle-wheelbarrow contraption to ferry it away.

Kipsiro outsprinted Kenyan former world champion Eliud Kipchoge over the last lap to win the 5 000m on the track but the day belonged to the green and gold clad swimmers of Australia.

Jones led a podium sweep for her country in the 200m breaststroke to become the 10th most successful athlete in Games history, just two medals short of fellow Australian swimmers Ian Thorpe and Susie O'Neill who share the biggest career hauls.

The three-times Olympic champion was pushed all the way by 17-year-old Tessa Wallace but stormed home to win by 0.22 seconds.

“It was a very tough race. To get away with a win here is great,” Jones, 25, said.

Emily Seebohm, who is competing in eight events in Delhi, got her first gold in the 100 backstroke after finishing second behind compatriot Alicia Coutts in the 100 freestyle, while Matthew Cowdrey won the men's 50 freestyle for para-athletes.

Wins in the relays combined with three golds on the cycling track and three in gymnastics contributed to Australia's total tally of 21.

India are second with 11 golds, England third with six while Malaysia and South Africa share fourth with three.

While Kenyans were expected to be among the medal contenders of an athletics competition missing big names like sprinters Usain Bolt and Asafa Powell, they were not expected to take any in the pool.

Jason Dunford bucked those expectations with his victory in the men's 50 metres butterfly, his country's first Commonwealth Games swimming medal.

“There are a lot of Kenyans in the crowd tonight and to hear the anthem, it's amazing,” he said. - Reuters

Games a let down for hospitality

The Commonwealth Games have been an absolute let down for the hospitality industry. Anticipating a great rush during the Games, the hospitality industry  in Jaipur, had geared up to host about a lakh of tourists from Delhi. But despite the onset of the tourist season, there are no takers even for hotel rooms that are offering almost 30% discount on printed tariff.

So while the safaris at the Ranthambhore National Park are already sold out even before the park opens, the hotels there are crying for tourists. "Most hotels are empty—- but the jeeps for the safari are sold out," said a Ranthambhore Association of Hotel Owners source. Travel agents had expected a great rush and gone for block bookings in advance expecting to sell them at a higher price later.

"There is a reverse trend with this time. We have received 40 to 50% more bookings over the last year, at this time, for overseas destinations. With Delhi almost sealed, the hot selling travel destination is the Andamans," said Sabina Chopra of Yatra, a travel portal.

The seven-day package to the Andamans, with a specially hired plane for Rs 32,000 (all inclusive), has clearly taken precedence over Rajasthan for the travellers. "Besides in India, Goa is totally sold out from the 1-15 October," said Sabina. As a result, tourism has taken a severe lash in Rajasthan, with no takers, despite the season. The initial hype created around the CWG had a lot of groups buying up new properties or add rooms to the existing properties, just in time for the CWG traffic.

According to sources, to cater to the CWG traffic, an additional inventory of almost 750 additional rooms was created across segments from budget to ultra luxury. Besides, for the first time two prominent national tour operators, Le Passage to India and Sita Kuoni went ahead to expand their visibility in the state.

"The company has extended its operations beyond Jaipur in Rajasthan with the opening of four new offices in Udaipur, Jodhpur, Jaisalmer and Bikaner the 'high footprint' cities," said Khalid Khan, executive director LPTI.

"But we can relax till mid-month as tourism has really taken a blow with the CWG. But just after the Games finish, we have a packed season," he said.

Similarly, after a span of five years, Sita Kuoni has once again started operations in Jaipur. "After winding operations from Jaipur in 2005, we have once again decided to establish our own base in the city, said Sanjay Sharma general manager Kuoni Rajasthan after inaugurating the office just before the CWG began.

Kenya: Country's 'Golden Moment'

Kenya yesterday launched its medal hunt at the Commonwealth Games in Delhi with the first gold coming from the unlikeliest of sources.

Jason Dunford's victory in the 50-metre butterfly final marked Kenya's first ever swimming gold medal at games of such magnitude, and buried the myth that it's only in track events that Kenya's hopes for gold lie.

Jason's victory follows years of dedication, sacrifice and personal investment without the all-too-familiar cry that the government should help the "smaller" sports grow.

That we can dig gold from the pool is proof that with more focus, Kenya can rake in medals from sporting disciplines we traditionally ignore.

Credit must go to the government and the National Olympic Committee for casting the net wider and sending a big delegation to Delhi, fielding teams in such diverse sports as archery, table tennis, badminton, cycling, squash and lawn bowling.

As we celebrate Jason's landmark gold, we hope Kenya can build on such performances to set a solid base for the 2012 Olympic Games in London.

Hockey men thrashed 9-0 by rampant Australians

There is a gap of 23 places in the world rankings between Scotland and Australia and it was all too evident as the tournament favourites crushed Russell Garcia's men 9-0 at the Commonwealth Games in the Major Dhyan Chand National Stadium in Delhi.

The contest was effectively over by half time as the Australians cruised into a five-goal lead. The Scots succumbed to Australian pressure in 14 minutes with a penalty corner shot by Luke Doerner.

Two minutes later the Wallabies doubled their lead when Chris Ciriello forced the ball home after a goalmouth scramble. Scotland's first attempt at goal came from a reverse stick shot from Stephen Dick which led to a penalty corner. Mark Ralph, on the occasion of his 150th Scotland cap, saw his drag flick charged down by a defender. Almost immediately Australia scored their third when Rob Hammond sent a fierce reverse shot high past Scots keeper Alistair McGregor. Two further goals followed before the interval, the first from a drag flick from Ciriello and then a deflected shot past McGregor by Trent Mitton.

The second half saw a similar procession of goals from the Aussies as the Scots defence came under almost constant pressure, and the total might have been higher but for some telling saves from McGregor. Towards the end Scotland did have some chances to get a consolation, with the Aussie keeper producing a great double save from Kenny Bain before Niall Stott's penalty corner effort was also blocked by the keeper and then Ross Stott hit the sideboard.

Scotland's women have the chance to progress up their pool table today when they take on bottom side Trinidad. Coach Gordon Shepherd still remains upbeat despite his side losing 2-1 to South Africa in the last game.

"I was disappointed with the first-half showing against South Africa where we didn't get the tactics right, but I was delighted with the second-half performance and I can't praise the girls highly enough. I feel that I'll have no problem lifting the girls for our next game after this setback as this side has now become used to not losing games," said Shepherd.

Sheila Dikshit sings with kids in Games' spirit

Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit has much reason to cheer with the Commonwealth Games underway without any big glitches. And she didn't hide her joy as she joined 160 underprivileged children in singing songs at the Central Park of Connaught Place here.

Around 160 underprivileged children fascinated the onlookers and shoppers Tuesday evening at the Central Park in the newly renovated Connaught Place by singing and dancing which even the Delhi chief minister Sheila Dikshit could not resist and joined them.

A youth festival organized by the Delhi government, as part of the ongoing Commonwealth Games (CWG) celebrations witnessed the participation of the choral group of Deepalaya, an NGO working among urban and rural poor.

"The chief minister joined the kids on the stage and sang 'Teri Hai Zameen' song. Besides this song, the students sang an English song 'We are the Children, we are the world," said a member of the NGO.

After enjoying four performances by the students of Deepalaya, the chief minister said that a fantastic programme was put up and Deepalaya is doing a great job, lastly thanking all the students who participated in the event.

"She even asked the compere to inform the audience that the kids were to perform at the Opening Ceremony of the Games but could not do so because of the health constraints of some students," the member added.

The day also saw other performances such as a giant puppet show, Kuchipudi dance and fusion music by various schools and institutes.

CWG Weightlifting: Ravi Kumar sets new Games record on way to gold

Indias K. Ravi Kumar won the gold in the mens 69 kg weightlifting event at the Commmonwealth Games here Wednesday, setting a new Games record in the process.

He broke the Games record lifting 321 kg (146+175) and surpassed Cameroons Venecelas Dabayas total of 310kg, achieved in the 2002 Manchester Games. It is also a new Commonwealth Championships record.

Problems mount at Games, spectators needed

The empty stadiums that have marred the first two days of competition at the crisis-hit Commonwealth Games may be filled by children and the underprivileged given free tickets if attendance doesn't improve.

After weeks of problems and delays in a wide range of areas in the buildup to the Games, the sporting events are starting to grab some focus in New Delhi with host India winning five gold medals on Tuesday and England winning its first two in the pool.

But the problems persisted outside of competition. Workers were rushing to relay turf on the infield and try to clean up Sunday's opening ceremony at Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium so it's ready in time for the athletics program to start Wednesday.

Police scoured the athletes village after an anonymous bomb threat, but it was later confirmed as a hoax. Authorities said a 16-year-old local boy had been cautioned after calling the police from a mobile telephone and claiming that a bomb had been placed in the village.

Led by Montreal weightlifter Marilou Dozois-Prevost, Canada won a gold and two bronze Tuesday.

Dozois-Prevost's total of 182 kilograms — 82 in the snatch and 100 in the clean and jerk — in the women's 53-kilogram class earned her a first international gold.

Fredericton wrestler Eric Fuenekes lost his third-place bout in the 96-kilogram Greco-Roman division but still won a bronze medal thanks to Hassene Fkiri's lack of manners.

The Australian was stripped of his silver for making a rude gesture to judges during his final against India's Anil Kumar. A South African was bumped up to silver and Fuenekes got the bronze.

Canada's women's gymnastics team — Catherine Dion of Gatineau, Que., Kristin Klarenbach of Edmonton, Cynthia Lemieu-Guillemette of St-Hubert, Que., Gabby May of Winnipeg, and Emma Willis of Sarnia, Ont. — also won bronze in the team competition.

Canada has two gold and five bronze after two days of competition.

Against the background of bungling, many of the venues across the city remained nearly empty, prompting local organizers to admit that they are considering giving away free tickets.

"We are working on the children from schools. Already steps are being taken in that direction," local organizing committee chairman Suresh Kalmadi said Tuesday at a news conference that was sometimes farcical. "And also from the low level of society."

While Indian shooters were busy winning the country's first gold medal of the Games, the leaders of the local organizing committee were sitting alongside the heads of the Commonwealth Games Federation and faced the media for the first time since the event opened.

Kalmadi was confident that the glitches from the first day of competition Monday had been solved overnight, saying that the transportation issues were dealt with and the addition of ticket booths at all venues would lead to bigger crowds.

"As of today, things are all right," said Kalmadi, who also mistakenly noted that "Prince Diana" had attended the opening ceremony before correcting himself and identifying Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall as the attendees.

Lady Diana was the ex-wife of Prince Charles, who is the heir to the British throne and the person who officially declared the Games open. Diana died in a car crash in 1997.

Despite the optimism shown by Kalmadi, Commonwealth Games Federation president Michael Fennell said his organization still had a number of concerns.

"There are some issues that we had to deal with and we have assigned those issues to various people to correct," Fennell said. "And we're expecting that those will be corrected during the course of the day."

New scales were used for the belated weigh-in before boxing competition started Tuesday. Athletes and coaches were upset when the scales used Monday were found to be giving incorrect readings, forcing some boxers to take desperate, unnecessary attempts to shed weight.

Organizing committee secretary-general Lalit Bhanot said it had been "rectified" and "There's no problem at all."

Mike Hooper, the CEO of the Commonwealth Games Federation, also responded to claims that he has been living a lavish lifestyle in India instead of ensuring that deadlines for the Games were met.

"It's just simply not true," said Hooper, who has also been burned in effigy by locals for reportedly criticizing India in the run-up to the Games.

"Obviously it was upsetting personally. I'm not going to delve into it," Hooper said. "The basis of what led to that, it's clear, is not correct."

The 19th edition of the Commonwealth Games have been plagued by construction delays, allegations of corruption and security worries, but with 18 gold medals awarded Tuesday and now 26 overall, much of the focus has now turned to sports.

India picked up two in shooting and three in Greco-Roman wrestling on Tuesday, with Abhinav Bindra and Gagan Narang starting the rush with victory in the men's 10-metre air rifle pairs event.

"It was always important for us to do well on home ground," Bindra said. "It gives us a good start and hopefully, we will have many more medals in the coming days."

Ravindere Singh won the 64-kilogram class in Greco-Roman wrestling, Sanjay claimed the 74-kg gold and Anil Kumar won the 96-kg event.

Singapore claimed two shooting gold medals when Swee Hon Lim and Bin Gai won the men's 50-metre pistol pairs event and Xiang Wei Jasmine and Aqilah Sudhir won the 50-metre rifle pairs.

In track cycling, Australia won the men's and women's time trial races and the men's pursuit. Olympic champion Anna Meares won the women's 500-metre time trial in 33.758 seconds, Scott Sunderland took the men's one-kilometre time trial in 1:01.411.

Jack Bobridge won the 4,000-metre individual pursuit.

England won its first two gold medals of the Games in the swimming pool. Francesca Halsall beat world champion Marieke Guehrer of Australia in the women's 50-metre butterfly, and world champion Liam Tancock won the men's 50 backstroke.

Also, Leiston Pickett gave Australia its fourth gold of the six-day swimming meet by winning the women's 50-metre breaststroke and Robert Renwick won Scotland's first gold with a victory in the 200 freestyle.

Australia won the women's team gymnastics gold for the fourth time in a row and led the medal standings after two days with nine gold medals and 23 overall. India was second with 11 overall.

Canada is sixth.