CWG 2022: Satisfied with practice, says Rajesh Bhandari
The Birmingham Commonwealth Games 2022 is being held from July 28 to August 8. India will be represented by 215 athletes who will take part in 141 events across 19 sporting disciplines.
“All our teams are practising, including hockey men and women, boxing team, squash team are all practising,” said Rajesh Bhandari to ANI.
Birmingham [UK], July 28 (ANI): With the commonwealth games just around the corner, Team India’s Chef de Mission Rajesh Bhandari said that the practice of the Indian contingent is going on well.
The Birmingham Commonwealth Games 2022 is being held from July 28 to August 8. India will be represented by 215 athletes who will take part in 141 events across 19 sporting disciplines.
“All our teams are practising, including hockey men and women, boxing team, squash team are all practising,” said Rajesh Bhandari as reported by IOA.
The worries about COVID-19 were also discussed, as there have been cases of athletes getting left behind because of being COVID-positive.
“There are worries about COVID but we’re taking necessary precautions,” he said.
It has been some time since the Indian contingent arrived at Birmingham camp and practice is going on for each of the teams.
“Everyone is practising, all the teams including hockey men and women, boxing team and squash team and we’re satisfied with the practices going on,” he added.
Earlier in the day, the Indian flag was hoisted at the CWG Village in Birmingham, on the eve of the Opening Ceremony of the Commonwealth Games 2022.
Several athletes, including the hockey men’s and women’s teams of India, took part in the flag-hoisting ceremony at the CWG Village on Thursday.
Indian ace shuttler and Olympic medalist PV Sindhu and hockey men’s team captain Manpreet Singh were announced as the two Flagbearers of the Indian contingent at the Opening Ceremony.
“It is a great honour to be bestowed with the responsibility to lead the contingent and hold the flag at such an august gathering. I am extremely happy and I wish all my fellow contingent all the best for the Games. I would like to thank IOA also for choosing me as the flag bearer,” said Sindhu in a statement as per Badminton Association of India (BAI) Media.
Alongside Sindhu, who medalled at the Rio 2016 Olympics and the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, two other highly deserving athletes were considered to be Team India’s Flagbearer: weightlifter Mirabai Chanu and boxer Lovlina Borgohain, who are both Olympic medallists.
Meanwhile, the decision to name Singh, who led the Indian men’s hockey team to a bronze medal at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics last year, as the second Flagbearer for the said occasion was arrived at after the IOA was intimated by the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games Organising Committee that two Flagbearers – one male and one female – must be named by each nation for the Opening Ceremony.
IOA Acting President Anil Khanna: “Manpreet Singh ended Indian hockey’s 41-year Olympic medal drought with a bronze at the Tokyo Olympics last year. He is one of the finest athletes to have ever represented India on the international stage. We are delighted to name him and Sindhu as the two Flagbearers who will lead the Indian contingent out at the Parade of Nations tomorrow during the Opening Ceremony of the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games.
“In addition, Rajesh Bhandari, Team India Chef de Mission, Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games, announced that a maximum of 164 participants from the Indian contingent can take part in the Parade of Nations in the Opening Ceremony, scheduled for July 28, 2022.
The Birmingham Commonwealth Games 2022 is being held from July 28 to August 8. India will be represented by 215 athletes who will take part in 141 events across 19 sporting disciplines. (ANI)
