Accommodation shortages reported ahead of Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games
Quick Look
Four days before the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games opening, athletes report room shortages in the container village despite organizers using hotels, a cruise ship, and temporary units for 15,000 participants from 45 nations to cut costs and promote eco-friendliness.
AI-generated summary
Why It Matters
The Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games are a quadrennial multisport event opening on Saturday, with some sports like football and basketball already underway. Organizers opted for cost-cutting and eco-friendly measures by using hotels, a cruise ship, and temporary container units instead of building a dedicated athletes' village.
By Kim Boram
NAGOYA, Japan, Sept. 15 (Yonhap) -- Complaints about a shortage of accommodations for the upcoming Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games have been growing just four days before the opening, a sports official said Tuesday.
As part of their cost-cutting and eco-friendly policies, organizers of the Asian Games did not build a dedicated athletes' village for this year's competition, instead providing accommodations on a cruise ship and in temporary container units, as well as hotels, for about 15,000 athletes and officials from 45 nations.
The quadrennial multisport event will officially open on Saturday, with some sports, such as football and basketball, already under way.
Under the accommodation plan, some 9,000 athletes will stay in hotels, while 4,000 will be housed on the cruise ship and 2,000 will stay in a complex of wooden container units.
However, athletes have complained of room shortages, particularly in the container village.
"For example, if the Games organizers had promised to offer 100 container rooms to a specific Olympic committee, they are short of some 20 rooms," said an official from the Korean Sport & Olympic Committee (KSOC).
South Korea plans to send 1,052 athletes and officials in 41 sports to the Asian Games.
Among them, athletes from five sports, including men's basketball, jujitsu and cycling, are assigned to stay in the container village, where each container can house up to six people.
Athletes in 18 sports, including archery, table tennis, judo and gymnastics, will stay on the 114,000-ton Costa Serena cruise ship, anchored in the port of Nagoya, Japan.
According to the KSOC, representatives of 45 nations have raised concerns about the issue with the Games organizers.
Amid the growing complaints, Games organizers are belatedly seeking additional hotel rooms for athletes, according to officials.
However, athletes in some sports have expressed satisfaction with their accommodations, as they are staying at hotels in Nagoya.
"Our hotel is very good. There is everything I need, so I don't have to go outside," Jung Ho-young of the women's volleyball team said during an official training session in Okazaki, just southeast of Nagoya, on Monday.
What to Watch
AI outlook โ possibilities, not facts
Games organizers will secure additional hotel rooms to address the accommodation shortage before the opening ceremony.
Likely ยท Within days
Open Questions
- Will the additional hotel rooms being sought by organizers resolve the shortage in time for the Games?
- How will the accommodation issues affect athlete performance and morale during the competition?
- What specific steps are being taken to address the 20-room shortfall reported by the Korean delegation?
