Commonwealth Games open in India

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NEW DELHI, Oct. 3 (UPI) -- The Commonwealth Games opened in New Delhi Sunday with eight gold medals to be decided the following day.

Indian President Pratibha Patil and Britain's Prince Charles presided over the opening ceremony. where around 7,000 athletes from 71 nations were represented.

The competition begins Monday with gold medals in swimming, gymnastics and weightlifting to be awarded.

The BBC said the opening ceremonies went off without a hitch, although The Times of India reported plenty of confusion on the part of spectators and media members trying to find their way around the venue.

The opening of the games had been in question this summer due to delays and complaints about the quality of the construction in the athlete village. One British team official told the BBC Saturday that the accommodations were actually pretty comfortable.

Security was heavy with around 100,000 police and paramilitary troops on duty in New Delhi to protect against terrorism and keep things running smoothly.