Indian Athletes Arrive in Nagoya for Asian Games Despite Check-In Delays; Wushu Team Settles After Cruise Ship Hiccups

Wushu and table tennis players, along with a few shuttlers, were among the first Indian athletes to check in for the Asian Games in Nagoya on Wednesday, PTI reported. The process was not completely smooth.

The seven-member wushu contingent reached Nagoya in the afternoon with two coaches. At registration, one player and two coaches could not find their names on the venue list.

"Six wushu players got their rooms at the cruise ship docked at the Nagoya port. However, one player and two coaches did not have their names there," a member of the contingent told PTI around two hours after reaching the venue for registration. The early arrivals mattered because both wushu and table tennis begin on Sunday.

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Cruise Ship Check-In

An Indian Olympic Association official, however, told PTI that all the players had got their rooms on the Italian cruise ship. The wushu contingent is scheduled to stay there during the Games. Both wushu and table tennis were among the Indian squads to reach Nagoya early because their events start on Sunday.

Housing shortages sparked wider concerns. Unconfirmed accounts indicated the contingent received fewer cruise cabins than promised, while hotel deficits forced Philippine delegates into Airbnbs. Competitors had begun checking in and "there is not much of a problem," Deputy Chef de Mission Achanta Sharath Kamal said.

Table Tennis Arrival

The table tennis group also had a long check-in process before it was finally settled into the cruise ship in the evening.

"It is a long process after reaching the cruise," a member of the table tennis contingent told PTI. "But now things have settled."

By evening, the immediate inconvenience for the paddlers seemed to have eased.

Games Housing Setup

India has sent 501 athletes and 265 officials. In all, nearly 17,000 other participants will also be in Aichi-Nagoya for the Games, which begin on September 19.

The accommodation plan is split across several locations. Roughly 4,000-5,000 athletes are to be housed on the luxury cruise liner Costa Serena at Nagoya Port, while about 2,000 will be placed in converted shipping-container units at Garden Pier in Nagoya Bay.

Everyone else will stay in other accommodation. The rest of the athletes and officials — and in fact most of the participants overall — will be housed in commercial hotels near competition venues across Aichi Prefecture and even in Tokyo, where some events such as swimming will be held.

Questions over the housing plan have already surfaced. The South Korean contingent has criticised the container rooms as too small, while some Asian Cricket Council members have also voiced concerns over the quality of accommodation on offer.

Reports have said the cruise ship may not have enough rooms set aside for Indian athletes, though that could not be independently confirmed. Separate reports said officials from the Philippines had been moved to Airbnbs because of a shortage of hotel accommodation.

Deputy Chef de Mission Achanta Sharath Kamal, however, told PTI that the athletes had started checking in and that "there is not much of a problem."