Competition at one of the most troubled Commonwealth Games ended yesterday when the final 16 of 272 gold medals were presented and the closing ceremony was held at Jawarharlal Nehru Stadium.
Commonwealth Games Federation president Mike Fennell said that despite the late completion of the athletes’ village and venues, and ticketing and transport problems, the Games were a success because the athletes enjoyed them.
The athletes’ village was in a terrible state just a week before the games started on Oct. 3, with several teams forced into hotels or delaying their arrivals because of filthy and unfinished conditions.
PHOTO: AFP
When Fennell was asked who was most responsible for getting the last-minute problems fixed, he said it was “teamwork.”
“When it was recognized that there were a few things that were not going right, the Delhi government at various levels and the national government put in a lot of resources to help correct the situation,” he said.
The closing ceremony celebrated the martial arts from several provinces of India, showcased the culture of Scotland, which will host the next Commonwealth Games in Glasgow in 2014, and ended with a laser and musical show.
PHOTO: AFP
Earlier in the day, India edged England 38-37 for second place in the gold medal count, both teams far behind Australia’s leading 74. The host country pulled ahead with a late gold by Saina Nehwal in the women’s badminton singles final.
Top-ranked Lee Chong Wei of Malaysia defended his men’s singles title with a 21-10, 21-8 win over Rajiv Ouseph of England in 30 minutes. The hard-fought women’s singles final ended with Nehwal, ranked third in the world, beating Wong Mew Chew of Malaysia 19-21, 23-21, 21-13.
Jason Wilson and Luke Doerner scored two goals each as Australia beat India 8-0 to win their fourth straight Commonwealth Games men’s field hockey gold.
PHOTO: REUTERS
In the netball final, New Zealand beat Australia 66-64 in extra-time, while England took the bronze with a 70-47 win over Jamaica.
Chrystalleni Trikomiti of Cyprus won gold medals in the rope and ribbon and bronze in the hoop and ball at rhythmic gymnastics.
Singapore’s table tennis stars cleaned up on the final day yesterday in a tournament they dominated so completely it began to look like their own national championships.
Such has been the team’s mastery of their opponents this week they have won every title going apart from the men’s doubles.
In the women’s doubles, second seeds Li Jiawei and Sun Beibei were the victors after an outstanding comeback, but all of their players looked like they could have beaten any challenger in the world outside of China.
As if to underline the point, the finalists treated an appreciative Yamuna Sports Complex to a number of sumptuous rallies marked out by deadly topspin, impossible chopped backhand returns and aggressive all-or-nothing smashes.
Favorites Feng Tianwei and Wang Yuegu took two sets off Sun and Li, who now has a hat-trick of doubles titles and 10 Games medals, before the underdogs grabbed victory.
Suresh Kalmadi, chairman of the local organizing committee, reiterated Fennell’s comments about the success of the Games.
“There were apprehensions before the Games began but all aspects surrounding the athletes — the conduct of the event, the overall set-up, the Games village, the entertainment and food — have been really enjoyed by them and they all return home with a great appreciation of India,” Kalmadi said, “.”
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