Complaints from athletes and delegations competing at Japan's Aichi-Nagoya 2026 Asian Games have intensified over organisational and logistical failures involving transport, accommodation, food and competition schedules, prompting the organising committee to acknowledge shortcomings and apologise to those affected.
Criticism has mounted since the Games began on 19 September, as competitions in several sports continued. Indian badminton player PV Sindhu, an Olympic medallist, was among the most prominent critics of the demanding schedule after playing 3 matches within just 18 hours.
Sindhu and Pakistan team complain about transport and schedules
Sindhu said after exiting in the quarter-finals that she returned to her accommodation at 3am and then had to leave again at 8.30am. Pakistan's volleyball team faced a transport problem about an hour before one of its matches when the bus took it to a different arena from the one scheduled.
The players had to change clothes on the bus before reaching the match venue, leaving insufficient time for their usual warm-up. Pakistan team captain Murad Jahan said the problems were not limited to transport, explaining that players sometimes returned from training to find the hotel restaurant closed, leaving them without food.
South Korean buses break down and disrupt teams' training
This complaint was added to other criticism concerning services provided to athletes during the Games. The South Korean delegation was among those most affected by transport disruptions. South Korea's basketball team had to cancel a light training session scheduled before the final after the bus assigned to transport the players failed to arrive on time.
The bus assigned to South Korea's football team also failed to arrive at the hotel on one occasion. A day earlier, another bus took the team to a baseball stadium instead of Mizuho Rugby Stadium, causing the team to arrive at its intended destination nearly half an hour late.
Temporary accommodation adds to athletes' criticism
Criticism also extended to accommodation conditions, with thousands of athletes facing cramped quarters and small beds, prompting several countries to move their athletes to alternative accommodation. The organisers had chosen not to build a traditional athletes' village to cut costs, instead distributing participants among hotels, temporary wooden units and a cruise ship.
Indian badminton player HS Prannoy described the accommodation and organisation as “sad” and said he did not feel he was taking part in an Asian Games. His comments came as complaints widened over the basic services athletes need between training sessions and matches. As criticism grew, organising committee secretary-general Satoshi Murate apologised to the affected athletes and delegations.
He said the late arrival of about 2,000 additional athletes and officials had increased pressure on available resources, but acknowledged that mistakes had also occurred in accommodation and transport services. Murate said the organising committee accepted responsibility for the services provided and that its teams were working daily to identify the causes of the failures and take the necessary steps to prevent them from recurring.
Organising committee president and Aichi prefectural governor Hideaki Omura had acknowledged from the start of the Games that problems could arise, saying the organisers would address them while putting athletes first.
The organisational disruptions coincided with heavy rain that caused several competitions, including tennis, surfing and cricket, to be disrupted, presenting the Games with an additional challenge alongside criticism over transport, accommodation, food and the pressure of the schedules.
