Australia raise concerns over Delhi safety

COMMONWEALTH Games officials have played down reports that Australia could pull out of next year's event in Delhi.

BIG DECISION: Australian athletes - at the opening ceremony of the 2006 Commonwealth Games - may not compete at Delhi 2010 over security concerns

Australian Commonwealth Games Association chief executive Perry Crosswhite has admitted to employing a private security company to study how safe the Games will be.

"At the end of the day it's our decision if Australia sends a team and we have to make that call with the best information we have at the time," he said.

Concerns over security have heightened following the Mumbai terror strike last November and the attack on Sri Lankan cricketers in Lahore earlier this month.

And Australian swim Dawn Fraser has already called on the event to be cancelled.

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But Commonwealth Games Federation chief executive Michael Hopper played down speculation that Australia might swerve the event.

"There's more than 18 months to go and it would be foolish to say anything now. It's is an evolving situation. I can say now that India is delivering on its promises of providing appropriate security measures," he said.

"Perry Crosswhite did not say that Australia would withdraw from the Games. He said they would continue to closely monitor the situation, which is quite normal. We too are concerned at the moment and we would continue to take security issues quite seriously."

Australia had topped the medals tally in the 2006 Games with 84 golds and planned to send 550 athletes to New Delhi.

Next year's Commonwealth Games have already been besieged with problems.

Leading newspapers have claimed the city is woefully behind schedule with its preparations while a laptop with sensitive security information was stolen from a Delhi Police compound last week.