Badminton-India's Sindhu stranded at Dubai airport amid Middle East crisis


FILE PHOTO: Paris 2024 Olympics - Badminton - Women's Singles Group play stage - Porte de La Chapelle Arena, Paris, France - July 31, 2024. V. Sindhu Pusarla of India thanks the crowd after winning the Group M match against Kristin Kuuba of Estonia. REUTERS/Hamad I Mohammed/ File Photo

March 1 (Reuters) - India's ⁠double Olympic medallist PV Sindhu said that ⁠she was left stranded at Dubai airport on ‌her way to the All England badminton tournament after the flight operations were suspended in the city as a result ​of the ongoing conflict in ⁠the region.

Explosions were heard ⁠across the Gulf as Iran responded with a ⁠salvo of ‌missiles, including in the United Arab Emirates' capital of Abu Dhabi and Dubai, ⁠leading to Dubai International Airport suspending all ​flights.

“To everyone ‌who has been messaging and checking in, thank ⁠you, it ​truly means a lot. I am safe right now, stuck here with my team, and we are ⁠doing okay as the situation ​around the war with Iran continues to evolve,” Sindhu wrote in a post on social media on Saturday.

In ⁠an update on Sunday, she added that they have been "moved to a more secure place" while they "wait for things to settle".

The All England Open ​tournament is scheduled to start ⁠from March 3.

The Badminton World Federation (BWF) did not immediately ​respond to a request for ‌comment made outside business hours ​regarding any contingency plans.

(Reporting by Karan Prashant Saxena in Bengaluru; Editing by Christian Schmollinger)

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