Tipton star's shock at Games chaos

England weightlifter Gurbinder Cheema has revealed his "shock" over the chaos surrounding the Commonwealth Games as the event's go-ahead hung in the balance today.

The first batch of English athletes will fly out to Delhi today after team bosses insisted they will travel to the crisis-hit competition, with Tipton weightlifter Cheema due to follow on Monday - just five days after part of the ceiling in the weightlifting arena collapsed.

A bridge near the stadium also collapsed and injured 23 people on Tuesday, while the athletes' village, which was supposed to open today, has been branded 'uninhabitable.'

But the 31-year-old, who trains at the Harry Mitchell Centre in Smethwick, admitted his surprise at the disarray.

He said: "It's a bit shocking, we're just a week away and things aren't ready when you would expect them to be. It's disappointing but hopefully it will get sorted in the next week.

"India is a big country though and you would have thought it would be sorted. At the moment, all I've heard it part of the roof has fallen in and it's not a good thing, I'm going out on Monday.

"You do have concerns and our team mangers are flying out this weekend so until they say we can't go or we shouldn't go I'll continue as normal.

"If it isn't safe I'll follow what's best."

But, despite the problems, Cheema insisted any safety issues will not cross his mind once in Delhi as he bids to win gold in his third Games.

He said: "If the team managers all give their assurances and say it's OK to go I won't be worried, but safety is the most important thing.

"I've been training as normal but keeping one eye on that and another on the news."

New Zealand and Canada have joined Scotland in announcing they would not be sending athletes as scheduled to India.

New Zealand Olympic Committee (NZOC) president Mike Stanley said: "It's tremendously disappointing.

"The long list of outstanding issues has made it clear the village will now not be ready for New Zealand athletes to move in as planned."

India's Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will today hold crisis talks with leading ministers involved in the Games.