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India furious at Olympics opening gatecrasher

Olympics mystery woman angers India officials
Olympics mystery woman angers India officials

Indian officials are furious with organisers at the Olympics after a woman gatecrashed India’s athletes’ parade at the opening ceremony on Friday.

The organisers are looking into how the woman in red and blue walked alongside Sushil Kumar who was the flag bearer in the sequence. However, she was in complete contrast to female members of the contingent who were wearing yellow saris and blue blazers.

According to Reuters, the woman’s identity was originally a mystery, but subsequent investigation has revealed that she was one of the thousands-strong volunteer cast who had managed to stay in the stadium and join the Indian athletes.

“How did they allow her in? It was a security lapse,” Indian Olympic Association vice president Tarlochan Singh said.

“She walked along in the front line. Her dress was totally different. She was not wearing an identity card. This should have been noticed at an earlier stage but nobody bothered.”

Indian media reported that the woman was a postgraduate student from Bangalore, and while Games chief Sebastian Coe confirmed that she had been identified he did not give her identity.