#18: Commonwealth Games Diary 2

Bowels of Stadiums, Baltis, and my first time at Edgbaston.

Wednesday, 27th July:

My first visit to Edgbaston Stadium involved the wrong bus. After waiting patiently for a bus at New Street Station (the City Centre of Birmingham), I got on the first bus that turned up, rather than one I was supposed to get on. It turned out to be the right wrong decision. It didn’t go to Edgbaston, which is some 20 minutes south of the city centre, but it did drop me off close by, down Edgbaston Road. It worked out, because public transport to Commonwealth Games venues has been affected by road closures due to, that’s right, the Commonwealth Games.

Now, at Edgbaston, the Indian team was playing for the first time. And indeed, I was visiting for the first time. I’ve seen this venue host so many famous men’s Tests on TV. I’ve heard about how it hosted the first ever Cricket World Cup final, in 1973, when the tournament was organised by the women two years before the men. I’ve read about that temporary stand which boosts the capacity of the stadium to more than 27,000, making it England’s largest cricket ground, after Lords. So it was a nice (press) box to tick. A box with a view.

Note the E shaped floodlights

Most intriguingly, was that there was this charming little stream or canal flowing between the main stadium and the Colts ground, which is essentially the adjoining  nets area. Quite unexpected in a campus dominated by concrete. 

A short shower towards the end of the session had me taking shelter in the Broadcast area, where I was entertained by the logistical challenges they were facing. A hot dog cart that was locked was about to be broken into. By the police. They had a sniffer dog who needed to check every room before the venue was handed over to the organisers. There were plenty of jokes about whether the dog just wanted an on-duty snack. 

Thursday, July 28:

It’s opening ceremony day, and I don’t have a ticket in hand yet. This is a familiar situation. Here’s a video of how I just about managed to get into the opening ceremony of the last multiple sport event I covered, the Asian Games 2018. 

This time around, I’m assured by my colleagues that I will get a ticket, yet all of them got theirs yesterday, so FOMO levels are at their peak. Duran Duran are performing at the ceremony, and although I’m not a hardcore fan, I do know that one song, Come Undone, so I’m quite keen to be there (More on this in the next post).

It turns out that since my accreditation is with the broadcasters, I need to speak to a very different department about my ticket to the ceremony. Thus begins a trek through the bowels of Arena Birmingham, through draughty concrete corridors, past what feels like kilometres of cabling, and into the broadcast compound.

It turns out, my ticket is at the National Exhibition Centre, a venue at the east end of the city. I am at the City Centre, and the venue for the ceremony is far into the northwest. Like the Birmingham logo which is drawn by connecting the Games venues, I fear I might have to criss-cross around the city. Never fear, production managers are here. More calls are made, and a ticket is emailed to me.

On the bright side, by now I’ve gotten quite the tour of the bowels of Arena Birmingham, which is usually the host of the All England Badminton championships, but for this Games, is hosting the gymnastics. I only managed to get lost once. 

The afternoon is spent in pursuit of the famous Birmingham Balti, a dish that has its origins in Pakistani and Indian cuisine, but has been modified to become a Brummie speciality. It’s essentially cooked and served in a blackened Kadhai, which they call a balti, giving the food a slightly charred, caremalised flavour. One is meant to eat it with naan straight from the hot dish. A lot of yummy in my tummy.

And some great wordplay as dessert.