Officials 'ashamed' due to the 'Indian intruder' girl in the pic

Two days into the London Olympics, India had zero medals to show — and a fresh embarrassment. A mystery woman in a red shirt and blue trousers had gatecrashed the Indian contingent's march past at the opening ceremony, walking alongside flag-Bearer Kumar and waving to the crowd as if she belonged there.

The woman was later identified as Madhura Nagendra, a post-graduate from Bangalore living in London. She was a dancer selected by show creator Danny Boyle to perform in the opening ceremony, and she had apparently "got slightly overexcited" and tagged along with the Indian team for the full lap.

The Indian contingent was furious. Acting Chef-de-Mission Brig. P.K. Muralidharan Raja called it a shame and shot off a protest letter to the organisers. "She had no business to walk with the Indian contingent and we are taking up the issue with the organisers. We don't know who she is and why she was allowed to walk in. It is a shame that she was with the athletes in the march past," he said.

London organisers LOCOG apologised. LOCOG chairman Lord Sebastian Coe said he would meet the Indian delegation over the incident. "She sort of made it into the Opening Ceremony. She was a cast member who clearly got slightly overexcited. She shouldn't have been there," he said.

Madhura herself later regretted it. "It was an error of judgment. This act of mine disappointed many. I regret my action," she said, adding that she had not breached security and had entered the stadium with permission.