AUSTRALIAN CRITICISM Behaviour at closing ceremony ‘disgrace’

Press, Volume CXIV, Issue 33450, 4 February 1974, Page 18

AUSTRALIAN CRITICISM Behaviour at closing ceremony ‘disgrace’

The behaviour of Commonwealth Games competitors during the closing ceremony on Saturday was “a disgrace to amateur sport,” the Australian team manager (Mr Bill Young) said yesterday.

“.Mob hysteria got the better of them,” Mr Young said at a press; conference. He said he and other team managers would submit al formal motion that the for-1 mat for the closing cere-1 monies of future Games be changed drastically. They would propose that only gold ( medallists, a flagbearer, and* . the general manager from I 1 each team take part. Mr Young was commenting { on the scenes at Queen Eliza-1 beth II Park on Saturday,

during which competitors held an impromptu football ; match, stole the hats of policemen and Games hostesses, rode bicycles, frolicked with a wheelbarrow and circusitype “human-cow,” and danced and raced around the I arena. Broken leg An African suffered a 1 .broken leg during the foot-; ball game. Competitors also frolicked; j the ceremony of handing over; the ceremonial Common-. , wealth Games flag. They|

milled around and under the blue and gold flag as a unit of the Scottish Regiment bore it down the track. “Sorry day” Mr Young described this as desecration of the flag, and i said all Australians would deplore it. "It was a sad and sorry day for amateur sport,” Mr Young said. “It must never' occur again, and will be rec-' itified.” The Queen, Prince Philip, l , Princess Anne, and her hus- ; 'hand, Captain Mark Phillips, 'attended the ceremony, and rhe Queen formally declared the Games closed. I Mr Young said the Comd monwealth Games would be fortunate to have Royalty at- 1 tend in the future after the: affair on Saturday. “It could have got really . out of hand, and a riot could .have begun,” he said. “I also I was not happy to see some of our girls riding on the :back of Princess Anne’s: Land-Rover as she left the? : stadium.” Canadian view The manager of the Cana-1 dian team (Mr Wally Stin-i son) said that he did not' agree with the plan of Mr' Young and other managers to restrict marchers in thej closing ceremony to gold I medallists, flagbearers, and officials. He said there should be at least a representative of each sport from each country. “The kids had been kept ' waiting outside the stadium for two hours,” said Mr Stinson. “When they finally got in it was like opening a can of worms—they were all over the place.” Mr Stinson agreed with Mr Young that at each Games, competitors tried to outdo (each other at the closing? iceremonies, and he described; ■ the “human cow” and the accompanying placard praising! Guernsey milk as a clever contribution. But he said that some other incidents, including the football, were not necessary.

High jump The manager of the New Zealand team (Mr Bill Holley) said that there appeared to be a need to reorganise the closing ceremonies. One part of the final day’s programme lin the main stadium that needed attention was the timing of the women’s high; jump. ii This had continued too 1 too late into the day, and had .'delayed the closing ceremony. He thought it might ‘ need to begin in the morning; fin future. Mr Holley said the spirit of the closing ceremony had ;been in keeping with what; ’ had become accepted as a feafture of the occasion. "I must admit that it is not altogether my piece of cake. ’ but we have to try to be 1 modern. Some parts of it appealed to me immensely, ; i though.” “Fitting end" It would probably be ; accepted as a fitting end to a memorable Games. He would have preferred to see the teams come in under thir own banners, said Mr Holley. If the dignity of | the occasion had been maintained in the first part of. the ceremony, it would have been up to the competitors to develop their own contributions after that. Mr Holley said it was a pity that managers of visiting teams had been kept standing in the “warm-up area” I for more than two hours. This was largely because of the extra time needed to decide the women’s high i jump. i