She isn’t the only one complaining and heat is just one of the woes expressed by the elite athletes who have converged here for the Games costing close to $9 billion. Besides the transport headache, Olympians in Paris are losing sleep due to empty stomachs or concerns about their belongings.

A Japanese rugby player has lost his wedding ring. An Australian coach complained of a stolen credit card. The Americans have mocked the cramped bedrooms. South Korean swimmers checked out after just one day, citing transportation issues. And the Indians feel the food is inadequate and rationed — Team Great Britain flew in their own chef.

For thousands of athletes, the sprawling Olympic Village is a “home”. But they are not feeling at home. “From sleeping to bus to food… I don’t think there’s any athlete I have spoken with (who) is satisfied,” India’s top-ranked singles tennis player Sumit Nagal said.

Badminton doubles star Chirag Shetty admitted that he “wouldn’t say it was the best”. Boxer Amit Panghal has been ordering dal and roti for dinner from a nearby Indian restaurant. Two-time Olympic medallist P V Sindhu, after securing her spot in the knockout rounds on Wednesday, said the fan worked for her the night before, the hottest of the Olympics so far, but wasn’t sure if others could sleep well.

To reduce the carbon footprint, Paris Olympics organisers decided to do away with air conditioning inside athletes’ rooms. Maybe, the noble green thought didn’t factor in the heat wave that hit Paris, resulting in sweaty Olympians cramped in pokey quarters.

Earlier this week, USA’s tennis sensation Coco Gauff gave her followers on TikTok a glimpse into the rooms where she and her teammates are staying. The video had screaming sound effects with a caption that read: “10 girls, two bathrooms”.

An Indian table tennis player said the “cardboard” beds are so uncomfortable that they faced trouble “sleeping peacefully” for the first couple of nights. “But that is something we still got used to. The real problem is at the dining hall, where either there isn’t enough food or, if it is available, the queue is very, very long,” the paddler added.

Supply issues have marred the football-field-sized dining area — the 3,500-seater hall feeds around 15,000 people and has been serving up to 40,000 meals per day — since the first day.

Shuttler Tanisha Crasto said the day there was rajma on the menu, “it got over even before we could reach”. And the containers were not refilled. Vegetarian items aren’t the only ones that are being rationed — eggs and grilled meats, too, have been in short supply, according to leading French sports newspaper L’Equipe.

An official with the Indian contingent said the issue was flagged with the organisers and normal service was slowly resuming. “We have advised our athletes to be careful in ordering from outside since we can’t be sure of the quality. Inside the Village, at least quality won’t be compromised,” said the official.

The Indian contingent, meanwhile, is bracing itself for other issues which “can be under its control”. On top of that list is transport.

Team India has kept one station wagon, a mini SUV, two minivans and four other vehicles on standby to ferry athletes from the Village to the Games venues, which are spread all over Paris. “Every night, we look at the schedule for the next day and assign these vehicles to each athlete who is set to compete. This is a back-up, just in case the bus is running late,” said the official, adding that this advanced planning came in handy for the badminton players and equestrian team members.

Indian athletes have also been asked to use safety vaults inside their rooms to store their valuables after incidents of robbery were reported inside the Village. According to the Japan Times, a Rugby Sevens player from the country filed a police complaint for the theft of a wedding ring, a necklace and cash from his room inside the Village. The estimated value was 3,000 euros. Le Parisien reported that an Australian hockey team coach filed a police complaint regarding the theft of a bank card. The report added that the individual was contacted by his bank for a “suspicious transaction” of 1,500 Australian dollars.

Nagal, meanwhile, said he wasn’t impressed with the Village as a whole. “This is the biggest tournament in the world for every sport. I think they could have done a better job,” he said.