NEW DELHI: The pool water is clean, but the toilets in the aquatic venue are blocked. Ticket sales are on the increase but the stadiums still seem mostly empty. There was a “major communications blunder” at the track that nearly resulted in athletes being presented with their medals despite the race being under protest. It wass day five of competition at the Commonwealth Games. But somehow, based on all the problems, they all seem to have a common theme. Commonwealth Games Federation President Mike Fennell Friday said officials at the athletics stadium erred the previous night by not telling the medalists in the women's 100m that the event was under protest. The original winner, Sally Pearson of Australia, was later disqualified. “There was a problem ... there was a major communication blunder,” Fennell said. On a day when 43 gold medals were to be presented, the sports often seemed to be an afterthought, not helped by a results system that has not worked properly since the Games opened. Fennell is part of what is called the “games-time management committee.” It meets every morning, and Friday they had several new and continuing issues to handle: a Pakistan official reporting that $550 had been stolen from his room at the athletes' village; the reports of blocked toilets at the swimming venue; poor quality of food to volunteers; and trying to get approval for helicopters to encroach on restricted airspace over the city for television coverage of the marathon and road cycling events. But the biggest question mark of all: if 900,000 tickets have been sold, why do many of the stadiums appear nearly empty? Previous problems in the leadup to the Games included construction delays, corruption allegations, concerns about security, outbreaks of dengue fever and, perhaps the most damaging, complaints about unfinished and filthy accommodations in the athletes' village just days before teams were due to arrive. One mystery out of the way Friday was the quality of the pool water, which was suspected of being responsible for a dozen or more cases of “Delhi belly” affecting mostly Australian and English swimmers. Fennell said three pools were tested - including the main pool and warmup pool - “and the tests results of all those pools is that the water is in keeping with the standards that are required. There are no problems with the water in those pools.” Among the eight track gold medals on Friday's program, European champion Andy Turner led an England sweep of the medals in the 110-meter hurdles, winning in 13.38 from William Sharman and Lawrence Clarke. Sharman picked up a stomach bug on the eve of the race and spent time in hospital on a drip Friday between his qualifying heat and the final. Olympic champion Nancy Jebet Langat pulled away on the final lap to win the women's 1,500 in 4:05.26, a Commonwealth Games record, while Amantle Montsho of Botswana set a games mark in winning the women's 400. Another Kenyan, Grace Momanyi, took the women's 10,000m. India's Kavita Raut claimed the bronze in the race, becoming only the second track runner from India to win a medal in the history of the Games and first in 52 years. Canadian Jamie Adjetey-Nelson led from start to finish to win the decathlon with 8,070 points. Australia was dominant at the velodrome and the pool, rounding off track cycling with 12 gold medals from 14 events. Cameron Meyer collected his third gold with victory in the 20-kilometer scratch race, while the Australians also beat New Zealand to win the men's team sprint. World champion Alison Shanks won the women's individual pursuit, holding off Olympic silver medalist Wendy Houvenaghel of Northern Ireland. Led by comeback king Geoff Huegill and veteran Leisel Jones, Australia won four more gold medals in the pool to lift its meet-leading total to 18. Huegill, completing his return from a four-year retirement and the loss of 50 kilograms (110 pounds) that he packed on while not swimming, won the 100-meter butterfly. “Words can't describe how I feel. ... The last time I swam that quickly was 10 years ago,” Huegill said. Liam Tancock, Rebecca Adlington and James Goddard gave England three gold medals on the night to partially break the Australian dominance. Tancock won the 100 backstroke in 53.59 and Goddard won the 200 individual medley. Adlington, the Olympic champion in the 400 and 800, added the 400 to her earlier win in the longer distance, leading from start to finish in the eight-lap race. South Africa's Cameron van der Burgh completed the men's 50-100 breaststroke double, while Yolane Kukla of Australia won the women's 50-meter freestyle from England's Francesca Halsall. Simplice Ribouem, who switched allegiance from Cameroon after competing in the last Games in Melbourne in 2006, won the 85kg weightlifting title and dedicated his title to fellow new Australians. India too continued to excel with its women's wrestling squad celebrating its most successful day in history. The host nation took two golds and a silver with Anita taking the 67kg and Alka Tomar the 59kg. India also shone in shooting where it won three golds to take the country's tally to 10. World champion Nicol David added an elusive Commonwealth Games squash title to her five World Opens while England's Nick Matthew grabbed the men's gold. As expected, Malaysia took gold in the team badminton while Singapore romped to victory in the team table tennis. Hockey Full-back Gareth Carr scored a brace as South Africa survived a scare to pull off a 5-3 victory against Trinidad and Tobago in a Pool B match of the Commonwealth Games hockey Friday. South Africa has six points after losing one and winning two of its league matches so far while Trinidad and Tobago succumbed to its third defeat. In Pool A, Malaysia snapped its losing streak with a 2-0 victory over Scotland in a bad-tempered clash at the Major Dhyan Chand stadium.
