Athletes competing in the Indian Open Athletics Series-6 in Chennai were asked to report to the stadium as early as 5 am on Sunday due to traffic restrictions around Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay’s swearing-in ceremony, The New Indian Express reported.
Vijay, president of the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK), is set to take oath at the Jawaharlal Nehru Indoor Stadium in Chennai at 10 am. The indoor arena is located in close proximity to the athletics competition venue, raising concerns about overcrowding, traffic restrictions and athlete access throughout the day.
The Tamil Nadu Athletics Association (TNAA), the organizers of the meet, issued a notice asking the athletes to reach the venue a few hours before the scheduled events.
“Due to traffic restrictions on the access roads to the stadium, we ask that athletes participating in the morning training events from 7:30 to 11:30 a.m. enter the stadium before 6:30 a.m.,” the announcement said.
The advisory further stated that athletes scheduled to compete between 6:00am and 7:30am should report to the venue by 5:00am.
The move is expected to cause logistical difficulties for athletes, many of whom would have to begin their pre-event routine long before dawn. Contestants and officials are also likely to face delays due to increased security and increased crowd movement around the swearing-in venue.
TNAA secretary C Latha admitted that the schedule of the event could be affected if a large number of athletes did not reach the stadium on time.
“If there is a large absence of athletes due to the growing crowd, we can do it later,” said Latha.
Several finals are scheduled during the morning session, including the women’s discus final at 10:30 a.m., two women’s 100m hurdles finals at 10:35 a.m. and 10:45 a.m. and the women’s long jump final at 11:30 a.m. There are also five 110m hurdles events scheduled between 9.40am and 10.25am.
According to the current schedule, the end of the final part of the competition is scheduled for 20:55.
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Issued by:
Kingshuk Kusari
Published on:
09 May 2026 23:39 IST
