Even as the faction-ridden Indian Olympic Association finally found the time (presumably with some prodding from the Centre) on 1 October, after “months of discussions” to submit a ‘Letter of Intent’ (LoI) to the International Olympic Committee’s Future Host Commission, expressing the country’s desire to host the 2036 Olympic and Paralympic Games, there is still a crucial element remaining (besides than the inordinate delay).
While the IOC has welcomed “India’s interest in hosting a future edition of the Olympic Games”, it has pointedly raised the not so small matter that no potential host region has been selected so far.
Not just that the IOC also informed New Indian Express that it was mindful of the ongoing bitter infighting within the IOA between its president PT Usha and the cabal in the executive council led by Kalyan Chaubey, AIFF president and self-proclaimed acting chief executive of the IOA.
“With its huge passion for sport and youthful population, India has much to offer for the future of the Olympic Movement,” an IOC spokesperson told the daily via email on Wednesday, adding, “The IOC has not yet been informed by the IOA of any selected potential host region.”
New Indian Express has drawn attention to the IOC’s bid document ‘The Approach to Olympic Host Elections’, which clearly says, “To enter Continuous Dialogue with the IOC, the NOC is required to submit an official letter of intent to the IOC indicating the interested party (City or Region).”
Though Ahmedabad and Gandhinagar have been spoken about on several occasions in the Indian media, no official communication has yet come from the government on the subject.
When asked by the daily about the LoI submitted by the IOA, the IOC spokesperson did not go into specifics but stated, “The International Olympic Committee very much welcomes India’s interest in hosting a future edition of the Olympic Games.
“This interest has been expressed very firmly to us on a number of occasions by all levels of government as well as in our ongoing talks with the Indian Olympic Association (IOA).”
The IOC spokesperson further said that as of now there are “interested parties from four continents discussing with the IOC in an informal and non-committal way about hosting a future edition of the Olympic Games.”
About the infighting in the IOA, the IOC said, “The situation of the IOA has been addressed by the IOC directly with the IOA in a self-explanatory letter. There is nothing to add to this situation.”
The IOA and the IOC have had a few meetings recently to speak about the Olympic bid process, but what transpired is not clear. It is understood that the IOC had been stressing on finding a solution to the mess, New Indian Express reports.
The IOC’s National Olympic Committee Relations and Olympic Solidarity Director, James McLeod, in a letter accessed by the daily that was addressed to the IOA president and all EC members last month, had said that despite all efforts from the IOC there is no sign of any resolution.
“There are obvious ongoing internal disputes and governance issues facing the IOA, including a number of reciprocal allegations which have been raised within the executive council,” said the letter. “This situation creates a lot of uncertainty and needs clarification and therefore until further notice, the IOC and Olympic solidarity will not make any payments to the IOA, except for direct payments to athletes benefiting from Olympic scholarships.”
As things stand, it doesn’t look too favourable for IOA. The IOC letter also said that a full update on this situation (IOA mess) was presented at the Executive Board meeting on October 8.
For the record, Usha and the 12 EC members led by Chaubey have been locked in a bitter and dirty tussle over the appointment in January of Raghuram Iyer as IOA chief executive officer.
Hindustan Times, meanwhile, quotes Usha as having said on Tuesday that the IOA has been “engaged in productive discussion” with IOC.
It bears noting that a decision on the host will not be taken before the IOC elections next year and India will also have to face competition from several other nations, including Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Egypt, England, Indonesia and Turkey, which were “off the blocks” much earlier in positioning themselves as ideal contenders to host the sporting spectacle. Olympic officials had confirmed in mid-October that they were in talks with 10 potential candidates for the hosting bid.
Per PTI, India’s proposal has the backing of outgoing IOC president Thomas Bach, whose term ends in March 2025.
The last time India hosted an international multi-sport extravaganza was the 2010 Commonwealth Games in New Delhi.
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IOA submitted ‘Letter of Intent’ to host 2036 Olympics on Oct 1
