With more and more athletes announcing their withdrawal from the Commonwealth Games, Scotland and Canada became the first teams to delay their departures to New Delhi because of the appalling conditions at the athletes' village. The Oct. 3-14 games have been mired in problems for weeks, and on Wednesday part of a drop ceiling inside the weightlifting venue collapsed, spreading further doubt on whether athletes will be safe upon arrival in India's capital city. The latest woes came a day after a footbridge near the main stadium collapsed, seriously injuring five construction workers, and the athletes' village - where excrement was found in some rooms - was labeled “unsafe and unfit for human habitation.” The village is due to open Thursday. The first group of Scottish athletes and officials was due to depart Thursday. But Cavanagh said that dogs have been seen roaming around the village, while the apartments are “filthy” and surrounded by rubble and building debris. Canada's women's field hockey team and two shooting athletes were scheduled to leave for New Delhi Thursday but will remain at home for at least two more days. About a dozen members of the delegation's staff, some of whom were due to leave Wednesday, have also had their travel plans pushed back for at least 48 hours. Commonwealth Games England chairman Andrew Foster said his organization was monitoring the situation. The first English athletes are due to arrive in India Friday. The Wales team has given the local organizing committee a deadline of Wednesday evening to confirm that all venues and the athletes' village are ready. Many top athletes withdrew from the Commonwealth Games well before the latest round problems became public, including Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt and world heptathlon champion Jessica Ennis. But more athletes pulled out Tuesday, many citing safety concerns. Two high profile Kenyan athletes, Janeth Jepkosgei and Luke Kibet, citing injury and illness pulled out and a South African sports boss made clear his team would consider following suit if there were any more major hitches. World champion triple jumper Phillips Idowu of England said he was thinking of his children when he decided to withdraw, adding “my safety is more important to them than a medal.” Dani Samuels, a world champion discus thrower from Australia, withdrew after two Taiwanese tourists were wounded in a seemingly random shooting by two men on a motorcycle outside one of India's biggest mosques. “The fact that someone of Dani's stature (has withdrawn) I'm sure is making a whole lot of others question their attendance,” Jane Flemming, who won the heptathlon and long jump gold medals at the 1990 Commonwealth Games and is now a commentator on Australian TV, told ABC radio. New Zealand Prime Minister John Key said the future of the Commonwealth Games would be jeopardized if the New Delhi event was canceled, but he wasn't prepared to risk athletes if facilities and conditions weren't suitable.
