ID :
143763
Mon, 09/27/2010 - 00:02
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://oananews.org//node/143763
The shortlink copeid
Elena Baltacha pulls out of Commonwealth Games
London, Sep 26 (PTI) Fearing a dengue epidemic and
worried about hygiene in Games village, Britain's number one
female tennis player Elena Baltacha today pulled out of the
crisis-hit Commonwealth Games.
Ranked 50 in the world, Elena was a medal hope in New
Delhi but fearing about disease the Scot decided to cancel her
trip to India considering it would be too high a risk for her.
Elena said she saw the pictures of the filthy living
conditions in the athletes' quarters and read the reports
about the outbreak of dengue fever and decided to skip the
October 3-14 event, on Saturday.
"It's just the hygiene, the Dengue fever, all that kind
of stuff," Baltacha was quoted as saying in 'Daily Telegraph'.
"It is a very high risk. But all the nations are still
unhappy. Team Scotland are still pushing for things to be
improved.
"We're talking about the Commonwealth Games, with
athletes who are the best in the world, who have won gold at
Olympics, who have competed at Olympics; it's a pretty serious
event and you'd think that where you're meant to be staying,
they would get that right, and they haven't. That's the most
worrying thing, that's the thing we've seen and some of the
stuff we've heard," she added.
Elena suffers from a genetic liver condition that has
left her immune system compromised and the Scot tennis star
said it would be too high a risk.
"If I didn't have a liver condition, of course I'd go.
But the problem is that because it's immune-based, I am much
more susceptible to picking things up, and that's why it's
more of a risk for me."
Baltacha joins the list of growing athletes such as
compatriot Andy Murray, Cyprus's Marcos Baghdatis and
Australians Lleyton Hewitt and Samantha Stosur who pulled out
of the Games.
The Commonwealth Games countries had criticised the
hygiene of the Games Village in Delhi and the CWF chief Mike
Fennell is currently here to ensure that their concerns are
heard and on Saturday said 'considerable amount of work has
been done' at the Games Village.
The Commonwealth Games had a disastrous build-up as after
plagued by construction delays and corruption charges, it was
rocked by a tourist attack, a footbridge collapse and a dengue
outbreak. PTI
worried about hygiene in Games village, Britain's number one
female tennis player Elena Baltacha today pulled out of the
crisis-hit Commonwealth Games.
Ranked 50 in the world, Elena was a medal hope in New
Delhi but fearing about disease the Scot decided to cancel her
trip to India considering it would be too high a risk for her.
Elena said she saw the pictures of the filthy living
conditions in the athletes' quarters and read the reports
about the outbreak of dengue fever and decided to skip the
October 3-14 event, on Saturday.
"It's just the hygiene, the Dengue fever, all that kind
of stuff," Baltacha was quoted as saying in 'Daily Telegraph'.
"It is a very high risk. But all the nations are still
unhappy. Team Scotland are still pushing for things to be
improved.
"We're talking about the Commonwealth Games, with
athletes who are the best in the world, who have won gold at
Olympics, who have competed at Olympics; it's a pretty serious
event and you'd think that where you're meant to be staying,
they would get that right, and they haven't. That's the most
worrying thing, that's the thing we've seen and some of the
stuff we've heard," she added.
Elena suffers from a genetic liver condition that has
left her immune system compromised and the Scot tennis star
said it would be too high a risk.
"If I didn't have a liver condition, of course I'd go.
But the problem is that because it's immune-based, I am much
more susceptible to picking things up, and that's why it's
more of a risk for me."
Baltacha joins the list of growing athletes such as
compatriot Andy Murray, Cyprus's Marcos Baghdatis and
Australians Lleyton Hewitt and Samantha Stosur who pulled out
of the Games.
The Commonwealth Games countries had criticised the
hygiene of the Games Village in Delhi and the CWF chief Mike
Fennell is currently here to ensure that their concerns are
heard and on Saturday said 'considerable amount of work has
been done' at the Games Village.
The Commonwealth Games had a disastrous build-up as after
plagued by construction delays and corruption charges, it was
rocked by a tourist attack, a footbridge collapse and a dengue
outbreak. PTI
