Ticket probe ordered at 'Delhi belly' Games

Commonwealth Games organisers continued to wrestle with the riddle of why crowds were so sparse at venues when so many tickets had been sold, while health issues continued to dog athletes in Delhi on Saturday.

Officials maintain ticket sales for the October 3-14 event are closing on the million mark but rows of empty seats marked most venues on the sixth day of competition.

"We are receiving several reports people are going to ticket offices and being told there are no tickets available when there are empty seats in the venues," Games Federation chief Michael Fennell told a morning news conference.

"We have been promised this morning that there will be a full investigation as something is not right with these ticket sales and the reports that we have been receiving."

The ticketing issue is just the latest in a string of problems to hit the $6 billion Games, which India had hoped would display its ability to run a world class event but instead has increasingly become an embarrassment to the nation.

The build-up to the Games was blighted by allegations of corruption, a collapsed footbridge, a filthy athletes' village and shoddy construction, with a series of less spectacular snags continuing to bedevil the event since last Sunday's opening ceremony.

The health issues that caused several athletes to skip the Games rumbled on.

Nigerian table tennis player Ekundayo Nasiru pulled out of the men's singles competition because of malaria, according to his doubles partner.

"He is very sick. He has not been able to eat for the last two days," Monday Merotohun said, although there was no indication whether he had contracted the disease in Delhi.

Australia swimmer Jessica Schipper qualified for the women's 200m butterfly on Saturday morning and said she had taken precautions to try and protect herself from the "Delhi belly" stomach complaints while she waited for her event.

"People have been dropping like flies in the village, it's a bit worrying when your competition starts later than everyone else, so I've been eating a lot of cereals to be safe," she said.

Leisel Jones will join fellow Australian swimmers Ian Thorpe and Susie O'Neill as the most successful Commonwealth Games athletes if she wins a 10th gold in three Games in the 4x100 relay on Saturday's last evening of the swimming.

Victory for Jared Tallent in the morning's 20km walk put Australia further clear at the top of the medals table with 47 golds, while India and England are battling it out for second place.

Marksman Gagan Narang won his fourth gold in the shooting to help boost the host nation's tally to 22, matching their haul from the last Games in Melbourne four years ago.

More than 500 dope tests have taken place at the Games, organisers said, and so far all the results have been negative.

Suresh Kalmadi, the organising committee chief who has taken most of the blame for the shortcomings of the Games and was booed at the opening ceremony, failed to appear at the morning news conference for the second successive day.

Improvements in transport and an interim solution to the malfunctioning information system for media were announced and local organisers continued to insist the Games were going well.

"Everything was satisfactory until yesterday and everybody was happy but we must continue our efforts until the end of the Games," said Kalmadi's deputy Lalit Bhanot.

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