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The India men’s U-23 team and women’s senior national team might have been cleared to participate in the 2014 Asian Games at government cost on Tuesday but they still have to wait in China until Friday to fly to South Korea for the tournament.
Due to a delay in getting accreditation cards from the Indian Olympic Association (IOA), which would act as the visas of players, the AIFF had to cancel the tickets for both teams on Wednesday. This was the third time that the Indian federation had to do the cancellation.
“Can it be called as no cost to the federation now? Three cancellations mean a lot of money and the AIFF is paying for cancellations and re-booking,” an official close to the AIFF was quoted saying by PTI.
The teams are now expected to reach South Korea on Friday, September 12, but won’t be allowed in the Games village until September 13. That will be bad news for the women’s team in particular as they start their campaign on September 14 against Maldives.
The women then face hosts South Korea on September 17 and Thailand on September 21. Three nations from this group will advance to the quarter-finals.
The men’s under-23 side play their first match against UAE on September 15 while their final group game is against Jordan on September 22. Two teams from this group will progress to the round of 16.
