Bach encourages IOA decision to bid for 2026 Youth Oly : The Tribune India

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Bach encourages IOA decision to bid for 2026 Youth Oly

NEW DELHI:A committee to help Indian athletes prepare for the Tokyo Olympics and plenty of encouragement to bid for multi-sport Games were the two biggest takeaways from International Olympic Committee president Thomas Bach’s second visit to India in four years.

Bach encourages IOA decision to bid for 2026 Youth Oly

International Olympic Committee president Thomas Bach and IOA chief Narinder Batra during a press conference in New Delhi on Thursday. Tribune photo: Manas Ranjan Bhui



Tribune News Service

New Delhi, April 19

A committee to help Indian athletes prepare for the Tokyo Olympics and plenty of encouragement to bid for multi-sport Games were the two biggest takeaways from International Olympic Committee president Thomas Bach’s second visit to India in four years.

The encouragement was readily accepted as Indian Olympic Association (IOA) president Narinder Batra announced that he would bid for the 2026 Youth Olympics, 2030 Asian Games and 2032 Olympic Games.

“We are bidding for three events, 2026 Youth Olympics, 2030 Asian Games and 2032 Olympic Games,” Batra said. “We don’t know whether they will come to India or not. Let us see how fierce the competition is,” he said.

Bach, who is on a two-day visit to the country, was positive about India’s readiness and said that the procedure for bidding wasn’t open yet, either for the Youth Olympics or the Summer Olympics.

“It would be fantastic for Indian athletes to have Olympics in their home country. It will give a boost to sports in India and develop interest in many young people to take up sports,” Bach said. 

“But it’s not the time to discuss about future candidates as no procedure is currently open. The next slot for the Youth Olympics is 2026 but we are even yet to decide on the host city for the 2022 edition,” the IOC chief clarified.

Committee to help Indian athletes

Earlier in the day, Bach had a meeting with Sports Minister Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore and other officials. Bach announced the formation of a working group comprising members from the IOC, the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) and the IOA to help the Indian athletes prepare for the Tokyo Olympics.

“We have decided to form a working group with the IOC, OCA, IOA and the Sports Ministry to devise a road map where the most hopeful athletes from India will be best prepared for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics with international expertise at their disposal,” Bach said. 

“We have offered assistance and cooperation to the IOA to help in the matter of sports science, coaching, etc. I think it is a good initiative for the athletes of India and we are hopeful of seeing excellent results.”

The sticky aspects of autonomy and good governance was also discussed during the morning meeting. Ever since Batra took over as the president, the relationship between the IOA in the Ministry has nosedived. The two sides have in the past criticised each other’s working style. The latest flare-up happened before the Commonwealth Games where a few names recommended by the IOA were not cleared by the Ministry. Bach said good governance and autonomy were two sides of the same coin.

“The government too has to respect the rights of a sports organisation, in a way that both have to go together,” he said.

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