INDIA has promised to give the Bermuda Olympic Association a cheque for $100,000 to help train the Island's athletes ahead of the 2010 Commonwealth Games which will be staged in New Delhi.

The Indian pledge came during the voting for the 2010 Games last week in Jamaica.

And New Delhi's main opposition for the Games, the city of Hamilton in Canada, was furious about the $100,000 gift which the Canadians called "a bribe".

However this week, BOA chief John Hoskins, said that while the money will definitely help towards developing Bermuda's athletes for the 2010 Games, he was more impressed by New Delhi's bid than anything else.

In fact Hoskins travelled to India last month to watch the Afro/Asian Games which was being hosted by that country. "They did a fantastic job," said Hoskins of the Indians. "And you also have to remember that Canada has hosted the Commonwealth Games three times while this will be the first time that India will have hosted them."

The New Delhi Commonwealth Games Federation pledged to give every country competing in the Commonwealth Games $100,000 if their bid was successful. And while that money is just a drop in the bucket for countries like Australia, Canada and England, it represents quite a bit for smaller countries like Bermuda.

Bermuda does not have a vote when it comes to the Olympics Games but Hoskins said that Bermuda did have a vote in the Commonwealth Games, Pan American Games and CAC Games ? and Bermuda's single vote was equal to that of bigger countries like Canada and Australia.

But he insisted that the vote for India was not swayed because of the $100,000 gift.

"The whole issue was not about money but rather that Canada has had the Games three times now and India has never had one. And India represents 50 percent of the Commonwealth citizenship. The problem was that India had in the past bid three times and lost for different reasons. The first time was because their presentation was not very good. The second time was because of the hostilities between India and Pakistan had flared up at the wrong time. And the third time they just lost out in a close bid.

"The general feeling this time in Jamaica was that if they could stage the Games they should have them."

And India made sure each Commonwealth Federation from all the countries could actually witness that they could back up what they said. Hoskins, as well as every chief delegate from all the countries in the Commonwealth, were invited last month to attend the Afro/Asian Games being staged in India. The Afro/Asian Games had 3,500 athletes from 98 countries.

"I went and saw part of those Games in October," said Hoskins.

And he returned to Bermuda impressed by what he had witnessed. "I saw much of the track meet ? they had all the latest equipment and it was extremely well run. I saw some of the field hockey tournament in a stadium they had built in just 69 days and it was outfitted with an Astoturf pitch. And I also went to the Closing Ceremonies and they were as good a Closing Ceremony as I have ever witnessed at an Olympics."

The BOA chief said that India will want to stage an excellent Commonwealth Games as they are hoping to host the