Domestically the event does not have the conviction of Australians as it once did. From athlete withdrawals in the shape of boycott against their national sporting organisation( John Steffensen) or in fear for their safety( Dani Samuels), it is difficult to see that either athletes or administrators at any level would allow for the circumstances to evolve where such decisions are plausible, or even reasonable, if it were a world championship or Olympic Games in contemplation. Even the selections of Athletics at hl e t ic s 33
will not compete in the event.
Some of this is due to the October timing of the Games, coming at the end of a long season. Some further to the choice of India as the host and the inability of that nation to deliver suitable infrastructure amid corruption and terrorism concerns. Yet the previous mentioned factors speak volumes of either the stature of the event or the quality of its organisers: no reputable world class event would bear the incompetence that has dogged the event.
Domestically the event does not have the conviction of Australians as it once did. From athlete withdrawals in the shape of boycott against their national sporting organisation( John Steffensen) or in fear for their safety( Dani Samuels), it is difficult to see that either athletes or administrators at any level would allow for the circumstances to evolve where such decisions are plausible, or even reasonable, if it were a world championship or Olympic Games in contemplation. Even the selections of Athletics at hl e t ic s 33
Australia for the event are a telling tale: such scant regard is given to a high placing in the Commonwealth Games that an athlete ranked fifth in their event but well below world standard, such as decathlete Stephen Cain, can be left off the team without public comment.
The Commonwealth Games were a world class event, when the world was a smaller place. It has been a pathway to greater things as the world expanded. But for how much longer?
Tamsyn lewis, world indoor 800m champion, withdrew from the team, sighting poor form as the reason why.