Athletes Arrive in Delhi

Athletes Arrive in Delhi today

28 September 10

Athletes Enter Village – Chef says residential conditions safe and secure

Dave Currie confirmed last night in a phone conference call with the New Zealand Olympic Committee board that conditions in the village were now safe and secure. On the basis of that assurance the Board confirmed that the arrival of athletes into the village would proceed as planned.

This decision followed the operations team’s first night in the village and satisfactory reports on village security, fire safety and evacuation plans and public health management.

While facilities were now safe and secure athletes could expect some possible frustrations – minor power outages, delays, time spent being screened for entry to village/venues.

Transport remains an issue, however the Indian Home Office did confirm yesterday that dedicated lanes would be exclusively dedicated to Games traffic, as previously advised to CGAs. Members of the New Zealand and multi-country security team are spending the day today checking all routes for the delivery of promised security arrangements. Airport transfers are operating in a timely manner with correct security.

Final lockdown of venues is being checked by the multi-country security team and no athletes will be permitted to enter any venue that has not been approved. We are aware that four training venues may be taken out of the venue system and this will be checked on today. Any affected sports will be advised.

The New Zealand government reconfirmed yesterday that while security arrangements in India are not what we would expect in a country like New Zealand there is no reason to assess security capability will not be appropriate for the level of risk. The situation is being constantly monitored.

The NZOC are committed to providing athletes and officials with a safe and secure environment and the NZOC board thanks Dave and the hardworking team in Delhi for this commitment. There is a very experienced team working on our behalf in India and they have robust processes in place to address issues and concerns as they arise. The New Zealand towers have been transformed by hard work and resourcefulness of the team on the ground in Delhi. This encapsulates the 29028 message of mucking in and getting the job done Sir Edmund Hillary style.

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Message our Athletes

30 September 10

Our Kiwi athletes are starting to arrive in Delhi! Follow the team’s progress on our 29028 Facebook page – and remember to keep leaving your messages of support there as well – our athletes are reading them!

ENDS

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