Beds too short, worst-ever Asian Games rooms: Korea slams facilities in Japan

With the Asian Games set to officially open in Japan this week, concerns over accommodation are mounting, with South Korean officials describing the facilities as the worst they have encountered and warning that rooms are in critically short supply, according to a report from AFP.

The Games, being held across Nagoya and Aichi prefecture, will formally begin on Saturday, although football and basketball competitions are already in progress.

Organisers have opted against building a dedicated athletes' village for the event. Instead, participants are being accommodated across a range of facilities, including temporary wooden cabins, hotels and a cruise ship, as part of efforts to keep costs down.

South Korea's men's basketball team has emerged as one of the delegations most unhappy with the arrangements. Jung Jae-yong, vice president of the Korea Basketball Association, criticised the temporary cabins assigned to the team, saying they were unsuitable for some of the players.

“Based on my experience this is the worst it has ever been,” he said.

“Athletes who are over two metres tall cannot even stretch their legs out on the beds. It’s unreasonable.”

The problems inside the cabins were also highlighted by basketball player Byeon Jun-hyeong, who shared a video online showing a leaking sink that had left the floor of his hut soaked.

He posted the caption, “Please help us."

Around 2,000 athletes and officials are expected to stay in the cabins over the course of the more than two-week-long Games. Concerns over the facilities have also reached India, where sports authorities have reportedly built replica versions of the cabins to help athletes prepare for the conditions they will encounter in Japan.

Jung said South Korean officials had raised the issue but had yet to hear back from the organisers.

“The organisers have still not said anything,” said Jung.

“We are very concerned and discussing extensively with the Korean Sport and Olympic Committee what to do about this.”

The situation has been further complicated by extreme weather in Nagoya. Hundreds of athletes were temporarily evacuated from their accommodation last week after record rainfall hit the city, with further rain forecast in the coming days.

More than 17,000 athletes and officials are expected to be part of the Asian Games, a number that is higher than the Olympic Games. Organisers had originally planned for around 15,000 participants and admitted last month that the growing numbers had created significant logistical pressure.

They said they had “neither the manpower nor the budget” to manage the sharp increase in expected participants. The Olympic Council of Asia later stepped in to assure delegations that accommodation would be arranged for everyone attending the Games.

However, concerns have persisted, particularly over the availability of quality hotels, with several leading cricketers also expressing fears about the shortage of top-level accommodation.

A South Korean Olympic committee official admitted that the situation remained difficult with the Games just days away.

“At the moment there is a serious shortage of accommodation not only for the entire South Korean delegation to the Asian Games, but for delegations from around the world in the Aichi-Nagoya area,” the official said.

“We are doing everything we can to resolve the issue and ensure there are no such problems.”

The Philippines has also had to find alternative arrangements for parts of its delegation. Philippine Olympic Committee president Abraham Tolentino said the country's athletes had all been provided rooms, although some members of the support staff had been moved elsewhere.

But “some officials, like coaches, were moved to different hotels and Airbnb”.

The organisers did not immediately respond to AFP when approached for comment on the accommodation concerns.

The Costa Serena, an Italian cruise ship, is expected to arrive in Nagoya on Tuesday and will become one of the key accommodation facilities during the Games, with between 4,000 and 5,000 athletes set to stay aboard.

Other participants will be housed in hotels, including in Tokyo, which is hosting the swimming, diving and equestrian competitions.- EndsPublished By: alan johnPublished On: Sep 14, 2026 16:39 IST