Navigators to ride shotgun on athlete buses after embarrassing bungle

NAVIGATORS are now riding shotgun on Gold Coast Commonwealth Games athlete buses to prevent a repeat of the embarrassing blunder where beach volleyballers were bussed to Brisbane instead of Coolangatta.

NAVIGATORS are now riding shotgun on Gold Coast Commonwealth Games athlete buses to prevent a repeat of the embarrassing blunder where beach volleyballers were bussed to Brisbane instead of Coolangatta.

Games organisers were left red-faced on Friday after an out-of-town bus driver took the Grenada women’s beach volleyball team to the Anna Meares velodrome at Chandler, 100km from Coolangatta.

Renisha Stafford of Grenada serves as she and Thornia Williams of Grenada play against Scotland's Melissa Coutts and Lynne Beattie in their preliminary women's beach volleyball match at the 2018 Gold Coast Commonwealth Games on April 6, 2018. / AFP PHOTO / William WEST

The North Queensland-based driver was using a sat nav device not authorised by Games organisers.

Games boss Mark Peters said the bungle was ‘not acceptable’ and guides were now being placed on buses to ensure athletes reached the correct venues.

“We have to have extra people on the buses to make sure this never happens again,” he said.

The Grenada team has asked to arrive two hours early for tonight’s match against Australia, officials said.

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“Something’s the matter when you don’t know where Coolangatta is,” a transport insider said.

It is the second controversy to embroil the country Victorian bus line controversially awarded the Games transport contract, after thousands of spectators heading to Wednesday night’s opening ceremony were left stranded.

“When they realised that the bus was a little of course, and time was running down, they immediately rushed to our aid and sent an escort,” a Grenada team official said.

The bungle saw the team arrive late for their 12.45pm match against Scotland and they lost 2-0. Team members blamed their loss on the fact they had no time to warm up.