The Commonwealth Games 2022 opening ceremony was held on Thursday in Birmingham. While Lovlina Borgohain decided to leave the ceremony midway, she was left stranded.
Tokyo Olympic bronze medallist Indian boxer Lovlina Borgohain was abandoned almost an hour after she decided to leave the 2022 Commonwealth Games (CWG) opening ceremony midway. The ceremony was held at the Alexander Stadium in Birmingham on Thursday night and continued for about a couple of hours. Lovlina and another Indian boxing contingent member, Muhammad Hussamuddin, decided to leave early for the Games Village, a 30-minute drive.
"We want to train in the morning as we have a bout day after. The ceremony will go on for a while, so we thought of leaving. We asked for a taxi, but we were told that was unavailable," Lovlina told PTI. With the ceremony still on and the duo unable to book a taxi, Lovlina and Hussamuddin were left clueless about how to ride back.
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The pair ultimately took the first bus bound for the Village near the National Exhibition Centre. The Indian delegation was provided three cars by the organisers, but their drivers were done for the day. The athletes and officials arrived for the ceremony via buses. Meanwhile, India's Chef de Mission Rajesh Bhandari, vice president of the Boxing Federation of India (BFI), was uncomfortable with the consequence.
"We were in the middle of the ceremony, and I learned later that she and another boxer left early. We all came in buses, and the taxi option was unavailable then. They shouldn't have come if they wanted to leave early. Many athletes decided not to come, as they had training or competition in the morning, which we completely understand. I will be speaking to the boxing team on this matter," said Bhandari.
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A total of 164 athletes and officials participated in the ceremony, which is half the Indian contingent's size. The women's cricket team members also decided to stay in the hotel for their opening game the following morning.
(With inputs from PTI)