Repeated incidents of organisational failure at the Asian Games have left athletes frustrated, exhausted and disappointed as rain-delayed matches became the latest headache for host nation Japan. A glitzy opening ceremony did little to overshadow the growing accommodation crisis, logistical gaffes and scheduling issues that have headlined the Games, which opened on September 19 in Aichi-Nagoya. India’s multiple-Olympic medallist PV Sindhu lamented a badminton schedule that saw her play three matches within 18 hours.
Back at 3am, out again at 8:30am. It took a toll,” Sindhu wrote on social media after her quarterfinal exit on Sunday. Pakistan’s volleyball team was mistakenly taken to the wrong gymnasium an hour before the start of its preliminary round match, forcing its members to change into their kits on the bus and leaving them without enough time for a warm-up.
Team officials said they received no explanation. It was a repeat of what the men’s football team faced when the bus did not arrive at the team’s hotel. A day earlier, the bus took the athletes to a baseball ground instead of the Mizuho Rugby Stadium, causing a 30-minute delay.
On Monday, persistent rain became the organisers’ latest headache when it disrupted several competitions, including tennis, surfing and cricket. Both the men’s cricket quarterfinals between Pakistan-Hong Kong and India-Afghanistan were washed out after the playing field was drenched at Korogi Athletic Park on the outskirts of Nagoya. With no contingency built into the schedule for rained-off matches, Pakistan and India advanced to the semifinals of the T20 tournament by virtue of their higher rankings.
It was a bitter pill for Afghanistan, who saw the gold medal go to India due to the rankings rule three years ago when their Hangzhou Games final was abandoned due to rain. Typhoon Dujuan hit the Games early in week one, causing equestrian events in Tokyo to be suspended although most competitions were unaffected. The continental sporting showpiece is mainly based in the city of Nagoya and Aichi prefecture, but Tokyo is also hosting diving events while Osaka is hosting football matches.
The rain saw several tennis matches scrapped on Sunday and caused match delays on Monday. Fans hoping to catch Filipino headliner Alex Eala’s opening match against Thai opponent Patcharin Cheapchandej were repeatedly frustrated at the Higashiyama Park Tennis Centre. Eala, the women’s top seed, had her match shifted off centre court amid the scheduling logjam and wrapped it up in 55 minutes with a 6-1, 6-0 win over Patcharin.
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