CWG 2022: 10 Members From Sri Lanka’s Contingent Go Missing in Birmingham
Earlier, three members had vanished from their contingent and Sri Lanka had asked all athletes and officials to submit their passports. A top official, requesting anonymity, said, "Since then, another seven have vanished. We suspect they want to remain in the UK, possibly to get employment."
Birmingham, Aug 3: A total of 10 members of Sri Lanka's Commonwealth Games contingent have disappeared from the team's contingent after completing their events in the competition. Out of the 10, nine were athletes and one was an official and this is believed to have been done by them in an attempt to stay back in England. Earlier, three members had vanished from their contingent and Sri Lanka had asked all athletes and officials to submit their passports. A top official, requesting anonymity, said, "Since then, another seven have vanished. We suspect they want to remain in the UK, possibly to get employment." Commonwealth Games 2022 Medal Tally Live Updated
The British police have reportedly located three members who were the first ones to leave their respective villages and the team's contingent, according to a report in AFP. But no action was taken as they had visas valid upto six months.
Sri Lanka, which is facing a huge economic crisis, had picked a 161-member contingent, including 51 officials, for the Games.
The Commonwealth Games Federation and Sri Lanka Cricket has funded the athletes' participation. Sri Lankan team press attache Gobinath Sivarajah confirmed to PTI that a judoka, a wrestler and the judo manager have disappeared. "We have asked all athletes and officials to submit their passports to our respective venue officials in all the villages after the incident. The police are investigating and the three cannot cross the UK borders. What has happened is really unfortunate," said Sivarjah.
The Sri Lankan judo team has three male and two female players. According to reports, the missing judoka is a female. The judo and wrestling events are taking place at Coventry Arena, a 30-minute drive from Birmingham.
Sri Lankan athletes endured extremely tough time in the build-up to the CWG as the country is grappling with a massive debt crisis apart from acute food and fuel shortage. Members of the basketball team were forced to walk about 20kms to reach their training centres in the past three months due to fuel shortage.
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(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Aug 03, 2022 10:24 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).