England deny CWG pullout

London:

British team will definitely travel to India to participate in the 2010 Commonwealth Games, the officials said here after a report claimed that England will pull out over fears of terror strikes.

Dismissing reports of England's no show, team general team manager Ann Hogbin said the authorities have not advised them against travelling to India.

A report in 'The Daily Telegraph' claimed that "England is poised to pull out of next year's Commonwealth Games over fears that athletes will be victims of a terrorist attack."

The report further claimed that Sir Paul Stephenson, the Metropolitan Police Commissioner, visited the Indian capital earlier this month to inspect the Games sites and was said to have voiced "serious concerns" about the security arrangements.

However, Hogbin said they have no plans of pulling out.

"That is definitely not the case. Our current and strong intention is to field a team for the games in Delhi next year," Hogbin said.

"Of course, we have a duty of care to the athletes and other team members which we take very seriously.

"Despite having been given extensive briefings from relevant authorities, we have not received any indication that we should not participate in the games and we will continue to work hard to put in place the best possible arrangements for our team," Hogbin said in a statement to The Associated Press.

Britain's Foreign Office also told the AP that it has "not advised any of the British teams not to participate in the Commonwealth Games".

"We are aware that the Commonwealth Games Federation had some concerns about preparations for the games. We continue to work closely with the Indian authorities who are doing everything they can to ensure a safe and secure games," the statement added.

Caroline Searle, a spokeswoman for the English Commonwealth Games, said they were monitoring the security situation in New Delhi and a final decision on their team's participation will be made next year.

"We take guidance from the Metropolitan Police. We can't make a judgment until nearer the time. We have had briefings on security and we will decide when we know what the terror threat is going to be like," Searle said.

A host of England star performers including double Olympic champion swimmer Rebecca Adlington, world champion diver Tom Daley and Olympic gold medal-winning cyclist are expected to participate in the Games, scheduled for October 3-10.

Early this year, England's badminton team had pulled out of the World Championships in Hyderabad this year, citing security concerns and Australia had also refused to play a Davis Cup tie in Chennai.