Oops Moments
Nepalgunj, April 26
The eighth National Games concluded at the Nepalgunj Stadium in Banke on Wednesday. Province-5 got a massive infrastructure in the name the sporting extravaganza, especially in Banke. The Games was extended to 15 days, unlike previous editions. It began on April 10 and President Bidhya Devi Bhandari inaugurated the Games eight days later. Vice-president Nanda Bahadur Pun pulled the curtains down on April 24.
A total of 5,211 athletes, including 2,825 men and 2,386 women, from 11 teams — one each from seven provinces, Tribhuvan Army Club, Nepal APF Club, Nepal Police Club and Non-Resident Nepali Association — took part in the Games that offered 333 gold, 332 silver and 480 bronze medals in 35 sports disciplines. Most of the venues were newly-built and none of them was completed on time.
Actually, the athletes competed at the under-construction arena, except for the new events. Swimming had to be shifted to a nearby hotel, while shooting was rescheduled. Interestingly, shooters could not compete in the final round of 10m Air Pistol after three of the eight weapons broke down during the qualifying.
The Himalayan Times covered the events from ground zero and collected some of the Oops Moments!
Microphone malfunction
The Games featured 35 sports disciplines and the organisers made a mistake in spelling taekwondo. The board kept outside the Nepalgunj Stadium had spelt the sport as Taewkendo under the illustration of the Games mascot, the Elephant.
