Chaos reigns at the games

So they had to dig up their old uniforms, and pull out the players from their houses. They managed to have the team ready by 9.30 am and made it just in time for the inauguration of the indoor stadium by Chief Minister JH Patel.Most of the team lists were not ready. It was a real job trying to identify players from various teams.Then, there was the problem of playing on a new surface. The teraflex surface, actually meant for volleyball, was too soft for the players’ liking. Also, the ball bounced unevenly and some were not able to grip the ball properly. To top it all, they lost a match they normally would not have.

No wonder the Karnataka girls want to forget the experiences of the first day of the National Games.Besides, the adhesive tape used for marking had the irritating habit of sticking on to the player’s shoes. To add to the confusion, the score-board at the indoor stadium could not be made operational despite the best efforts of the engineers. They tried for over two hours before giving up.Meanwhile, news from the athletics front is that equipment is yet to arrive.

Ouseph, who coaches high jumpers Bobby Aloysius and Anju Markose was seen enquiring about equipment for his trainees. “I want them to get the feel of the track,” Ouseph said. “There is so little time for practice at this venue,” he remarked.Uninterrrupted power supply was promised by the Chief Minister during the course of the Games, according to N Vishwanathan, secretary general of the Games. But on day one itself, there were no power at the main media centre for a greater part of the evening. So the results of the schedules and results were not available. MEDALS TALLYTeams G S B TotalKarnataka 2 1 0 3Tamil Nad 1 0 1 2Maharashtra 1 1 1 3Haryana 1 0 1 2Punjab 0 1 3 4Delhi 0 1 0 1Orissa 0 1 0 1West Bengal 0 0 1 1Manipur 0 0 1 1(Note: Two bronze medals were awarded in fencing events)