Will bid for 2032 Olympics, 2030 Asian Games: IOA

NEW DELHI: The Indian Olympic Association (IOA) on Saturday announced it would submit an Expression of Interest (EOI) to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to host the 2032 Olympics and the 2026 Youth Olympics.

The IOA is also keen to host the 2030 Asian Games, for which it will submit an EOI to the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA), the federation added.

An EOI is the first step in the Olympic bidding process, after which, if shortlisted, IOA officials will formulate a bid with the government which will be sent to the IOC. “The bid for the Olympics starts eight years before the Games. As our term ends in 2021, whichever IOA executive board is in office then will process the bid,” IOA secretary general Rajeev Mehta said.

However, IOA president Narinder Batra admitted that India should win more medals if it wants the bids to be successful. “India should win medals in double digits (at the Olympics) in order to be taken seriously in their bid,” said Batra.

Until the breakthrough threemedal haul at Beijing 2008, India had won only four individual Olympic medals since Independence.

The country won the last of its record eight hockey gold in Moscow 1980. Abhinav Bindra’s shooting gold in Beijing remains the only individual gold an Indian has won at the Olympics.

CONTINUED ON P 7 ››RELATED REPORT, P15

THE INDIAN OLYMPIC ASSOCIATION (IOA) WILL SEND AN EXPRESSION OF INTEREST TO THE INTERNATIONAL OLYMPIC COMMITTEE TO HOST THE EVENTS