"Male and female athletes in the same room?" Even host Japan is appalled... 'International embarrassment' compounded by airport sleeping [Nagoya Asian Games]

[Financial News] The 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games, scheduled to open on the 19th, are already facing serious operational disruptions before the opening ceremony. In an extraordinary blunder, male and female athletes from host Japan were assigned to the same rooms, prompting widespread criticism of the organizing committee's lack of preparation.
According to India's sports outlet Sportsstar and others on the 17th (local time), the Games have exposed critical flaws across basic operational systems, including accommodation assignments and transportation.
The most shocking incident occurred within Japan's delegation. Hisashi Mizutori, deputy head of Japan's delegation, officially acknowledged at a press conference that a critical error had resulted in male and female athletes being assigned to the same room during the accommodation process. Severe confusion also arose when coaches, athletes and support staff were placed together in inappropriate combinations. The Japanese Olympic Committee (JOC), facing an emergency, is considering measures to completely reassign the rooms and use nearby hotel rooms secured in advance as alternative accommodations.


The problems affecting foreign delegations are also serious. India's delegation was reportedly forced to remain at the airport for hours because of an error in the event registration system. Some athletes, exhausted after waiting for hours to be assigned accommodation, reportedly caught brief naps on the cold floor. There have also been repeated absurd incidents in which bus drivers transporting delegations to training venues got lost and wandered around.
The fundamental cause of this complete chaos is the absence of a single athletes' village. Approximately 17,000 athletes and officials are taking part in the Games, but the organizing committee is using the large cruise ship Costa Serena and temporary containers near Nagoya Port as accommodations in an effort to cut costs.
JOC officials explained, "The number of participants surged after some events were added as official events at a late stage, pushing accommodation capacity to its limit." However, criticism is growing that, with Asia's largest sporting festival just around the corner, even the most basic systems for food, clothing, shelter and transportation have not been properly established.
[email protected] Jeon Sang-il Reporter