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The closing ceremony of the 38th National Games began here on Friday with home minister Amit Shah as its guest of honour asserting that the country is well on track to host a successful Olympics in 2036. Indian Olympic Association (IOA) president PT Usha declared the Games closed before handing over the flag to Conrad Sangma, chief minister of Meghalaya, the state that will host the next edition of the Games. “I can say it today that India has a very bright future in sports. We are ready to host the Olympics in 2036,” Shah said in his address referring to India’s bid to host the Olympics in 2036 that is still in early stages.

Along with Shah, sports minister Mansukh Mandaviya also joined the event to laud the athletes’ performances over the last two weeks.

To start with, Uttarakhand chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami welcomed Shah with a commemorative memento, a shawl and a bouquet of flowers.

“‘Dev Bhoomi’ has transformed into ‘Khel Bhoomi’ not just because of the National Games but also because of its athletes’ performance in the Games and Dhami ji’s relentless efforts towards hosting a successful Games,” Shah said at the Indira Gandhi International Sports Complex here.

“Thanks to their efforts, Uttarakhand has jumped from 21st position (in last Games) to seventh position (in the overall standings). I congratulate all the athletes who helped paved the way for ‘Dev Bhoomi’ to also become a ‘Khel Bhoomi’. My best wishes are with them.” Shah added, “I have observed that some of the records made by athletes during the Games here are comparable to those in international tournaments.

Besides Shah, Mandaviya and Dhami, several other dignitaries are in attendance here, including Mandaviya, next host Meghalaya’s CM Kongkal Sangma, Uttarakhand’s Sports Minister Rekha Arya, Indian Olympic Association (IOA) President PT Usha, boxing legend MC Mary Kom, and Olympic medallist shooter Gagan Narang, among others.

“Uttarakhand has conveyed to the country that it is not just Devbhoomi but also a Khelbhoomi. The state ensured that no athlete faced any difficulty during the Games. It is the beginning of India becoming a sports hub,” said Mandaviya in his address The venue has a capacity of 25,000 and was packed for the ceremony.

“It is the beginning of India coming inside the top 10 of Olympic performers by 2036. The country now has a sports ecosystem. It is moving forward in every aspect, including sports,” Mandaviya said.

Usha also conveyed a similar message in her address.

“The journey does not end here, it is only the beginning for Indian sports,” said Usha.

The ceremony will feature a ‘Games Recap’, highlighting the winning moments from start to the end of the sporting extravaganza that began seven venues on January 28 with state capital Dehradun being the main centre.

At the end of it, traditional powerhouse Services Sports Control Board (SSCB) topped the medal tally for the fifth time in the last six games, with a total haul of 121 medals (68 gold, 26 silver, 27 bronze).

Maharashtra won more medals than Services with 198 (54 gold, 71 silver, 73 bronze) but the lesser gold count meant that it ended at second spot.

Even Haryana got more medals than Services with 153 (48 gold, 47 silver, 58 bronze) but had to be content with a third-place finish.

Hosts Uttarakhand finished a creditable seventh with a total of 103 medals, including 24 gold, 35 silver and 44 bronze.

India is focusing not just on strengthening infrastructure capabilities, but also intellectual preparedness as it eyes hosting rights for the 2036 Olympic Games, Indian Olympic Association (IOA) president PT Usha said on Wednesday. The former track and field star noted India’s engagement with the quadrennial international games goes beyond competitive sports to embrace its true spirit of promoting peace and cultural exchange. She was addressing the 1st International Olympic Research Conference at Rashtriya Raksha University (RRU) near Dehgam in Gandhinagar district.

The four-day conference has been organised by the Bharat Centre for Olympic Research and Education (B-CORE) of the RRU, an institution of national importance under the Union home ministry.

In her address, Usha said thanks to the conference, representatives of various Olympic studies and research centres from across the world as well as experts from diverse fields have converged in India.

“India’s engagement with the Olympic movement is at a transformative moment, one that goes beyond competitive sports to embrace the true spirit of Olympisim — that is promoting peace, education and cultural exchange through sports,” she insisted.

“What makes this conference significant is its timing. As India intends to host the (2036) Olympics, we are not just strengthening our infrastructure capabilities, but our intellectual and research preparedness too,” said the former athlete, who dominated Asian track and field in the 1980s.

The IOA president maintained the conference will serve as a platform where global expertise meets Indian innovation through discussion on urban transformation, technological advancements, sustainability and inclusive governance.

One of the main purposes of the conference is to demonstrate India’s holistic approach to sports development and its role in societal progress, Usha emphasised.

“This gathering gave a powerful message to the international sporting community – that is India’s commitment to contributing meaningfully to the global Olympic movement through research, innovation and knowledge exchange,” she opined.

Speaking at the opening ceremony of the 38th National Games in Dehradun on Tuesday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said his government is putting all its might behind the ambitious bid to bag the hosting rights of 2036 Olympics, which will take Indian sports to new heights and create opportunities across different sectors.

In his address at the conference, which will conclude on January 30, IOA vice-president Ajay Patel said the conclave is a reflection of India’s evolving sporting vision.

Under the leadership of PM Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah, India is transforming sports into a national mission of empowerment and innovation, he maintained.

“Research is our most powerful tool. During the conference, we should discuss critical questions, such as how sports infrastructure can drive urban regeneration, what economic models can make mega events financially sustainable and how do we ensure technological innovation benefits people,” Patel noted. PTI PJT PD RSY

File image of Greg Bell.© X (Twitter)

File photo of Manu Bhaker with her Olympics medals© AFP

File image of Lovlina Borgohain.© AFP

An ambitious bid to host Olympics was set in motion, a long-pending national sports bill entered the final phase of being shaped into a policy but there was no end to the internal bickering and turf wars that have become the hallmark of Indian sports administration. Like most other things about Indian sports, even the administrators offered a mixed bag of performances in the year going by. But the country could take pride in some matters, the submission of a letter of intent to host the 2036 Olympic Games being one of them.

The development has kick-started an exciting but difficult journey to join a select few Asian countries to stage the ultimate sporting spectacle.

The October milestone itself was a roller-coaster ride thanks to the drama within the PT Usha-led Indian Olympic Association (IOA), a body that failed to explain just why India could not touch the double digit mark in its medal count at the Paris Olympics.

Half a dozen fourth place finishes might sound commendable for a nation trying to find its foothold in the Olympics but for a seasoned campaigner like India, they should have been medals that could push the tally past 10 in Paris.

IOA lives up to poor reputation

The IOA has been a faction-ridden body for the longest time and the Usha-led current dispensation is no exception.

The sprint legend found herself pitted against 12 members of the 15-strong Executive Council, and an ugly spat over the appointment of a CEO marred the whole of 2024.

It all began early in the year with Raghuram Iyer, a former top official of IPL sides Rajasthan Royals and Pune Supergiants, being handed charge as the IOA CEO.

The 12 opposing EC members refused to ratify his appointment, instead accusing Usha of “exerting pressure” on them to accept him as the CEO.

The track legend has termed the allegations as “shameful”.

There were allegations and counter-allegations with treasurer Sahdev Yadav threatening to file a defamation case against Usha for show-causing him to explain his eligibility to hold the post.

An EC meeting in September turned out to be a slanging match, that too in front of an International Olympic Committee (IOC) official who joined the proceedings virtually.

IOC issues warning

The IOC suspended the Olympic Solidarity grant to the IOA, amounting to Rs 8.50 crore annually and meant for athlete development programmes. It was meant to be a warning that India needed to put its house in order.

However, the move did not bring the warring IOA officials to their senses and both sides issued notices of a Special General Body Meeting (SGM) on different dates.

One of the agenda items of the SGM called by the revolting 12 EC members mentioned a ‘no-confidence motion’ against Usha.

But just before India formally submitted its 2036 Olympics bid to the IOC’s Future Host Commission on October 1, both sides postponed the meetings, pulling themselves from the brink.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi first made the announcement of India’s desire to host the 2036 Olympics and 2030 Youth Olympics during the IOC session held in Mumbai in October 2023.

In February this year, Usha said that the IOA was engaged in active dialogue with the Future Host Commission on India’s bid to host the Games even though a city is yet to be finalised.

Athlete-centric approach of IOA and government

Usha and new sports minister Mansukh Mandaviya, who assumed office in June, pledged an athlete-centric approach in their initiatives. As a result, a slew of schemes were unveiled which found support from both the active and retired India campaigners.

Medal winners at Khelo India Games — Youth (above 18), University, Para and Winter — were made eligible for government jobs as per revised criteria of the sports ministry.

Usha pitched for the inclusion of yoga in the Asian Games programme and she got support from Mandaviya. The Olympic Council of Asia (OCA), led by an Indian president in Randhir Singh, made it a demonstration sport at the 2026 Asian Games to be held in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan.

With new sponsors coming in for the IOA, Usha proposed a medical insurance and pension scheme for all ex-Olympians.

On the insistence of the IOA, the government made a departure from the usual 3:1 ratio of athletes to support staff in the country’s Olympics contingent.

The sports ministry cleared 117 athletes and 140 support staff and officials for the Paris Olympics, which was an unprecedented relaxation allowing most athletes to have their personal coaches by their side.

Sports Ministry also launched RESET (Retired Sportsperson Empowerment Training) programme to make former athletes self-reliant after retirement by making them employable with “necessary skills and knowledge”.

Concerns regarding Draft Sports Bill 

A new Draft Sports Bill which provides for a regulatory body for the IOA and National Sports Federations to ensure transparency and accountability in their operations, besides relaxation in the age and tenure of the administrators, was circulated by the ministry.

Usha flagged the possible threat to the autonomy of the IOA and NSFs enshrined in the Olympic Charter. Mandaviya assured that the regulatory body would be autonomous and will not interfere in the day-to-day functioning of either the IOA or the NSFs.

The IOC has not reacted to the bill, which is likely to be introduced in the Parliament during the Budget Session in early 2025. But it will not be swayed by the assurances.

It will act whenever it feels there has been interference from third parties as had happened during the 14-month suspension of the IOA from December 2012 to February 2014.

Other developments

India’s high medal-yielding sports like hockey, shooting, cricket, badminton and wrestling were excluded from the roster of a heavily scaled-down 2026 Glasgow Commonwealth Games, with the organisers citing financial and operational constraints.

The development caused an uproar that quickly died down as the host city’s right to have a schedule of choice is indisputable.

Onthe bright side, veteran sports administrator Randhir Singh became the first Indian to be elected president of the Olympic Council of Asia during its General Assembly in New Delhi.

Nita Ambani was re-elected as independent IOC member and shooting legend Abhinav Bindra was awarded the Olympic Order by the IOC for outstanding services to Olympic Movement.

Looking ahead: 2025 could be watershed year

The Paris Games performance by the Indian athletes was wide off the mark considering the liberal spending by the government, but 2025 could lift the gloom.

By the end of 2025 or early part of 2026, there will be clarity on the 2036 Olympics bid.

Poland, Indonesia, South Africa, Qatar, Hungary, Turkey, Mexico and Egypt are among other countries which have expressed their desire to host the 2036 Olympics.

Under the reformed host selection process, the IOC’s Future Host Commission can have “Informal Dialogue” with several aspirants in the first stage.

After this is the “Continuous Dialogue” stage where the IOC conducts a “feasibility study” of the progress of projects associated with the Games in the potential host.

The next phase of the process would be “Targeted Dialogue”, which would require the submission of an edition-specific formal bid.

After an assessment, the Future Host Commission may recommend a “preferred” host to the IOC Executive Board.

The IOC Session, the supreme decision-making body of the Olympics Movement, will then take a final decision on the Games host. The 2036 Olympics host will not be known before 2026.

Manu Bhaker, double Olympic medallist , is in news after reports claimed the champion shooter’s name was missing from the list of nominated athletes for the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award. The Khel Ratna is awarded to athletes with exceptional performances. With Manu’s name missing, despite being the first Indian athlete since independence to win two Olympic medals in a single edition of the Games, the Sports Ministry came under scrutiny. However, Manu Bhaker has now said that there might have been a lapse on her part and that ‘it is being corrected.’ 

“With regards to ongoing issue for my nomination for the most prestigious Khel Ratna award-I would like to state that as an athlete my role is to play and perform for my country. Awards and recognition keeps me motivated but are not my goal. I believe there has been a lapse, maybe on my part while filing for the nomination which is being corrected. Irrespective of the award I shall remain motivated to win more medals for my country. It is a request to everyone, please do not speculate on this matter,” Manu Bhaker wrote in a post on X.

pic.twitter.com/MPvf7uKJKM

— Manu Bhaker (@realmanubhaker) December 24, 2024

Meanwhile, double Olympic medallist shooter Manu Bhaker’s coach Jaspal Rana has castigated the Sports Ministry, Sports Authority of India and the National Rifle Association of India, holding them responsible for “ignoring” his ward’s credentials for the Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna award.

“I will hold all of them responsible. How can anyone even say Manu did not apply? She made history by becoming the first Indian to win two Olympic medals in the same Olympics. Her name should have been there automatically. Don’t the people at the helm know who Manu Bhaker is and what are her credentials? This humiliation might just affect her progress,” Rana told PTI Videos in an interview.

The national coach felt the “new requirement” where sportspersons have to apply directly for the awards was not in the best interest of sports, and was a bit demeaning.

The ministry norms allow athletes to self-nominate instead of relying on the federations and other institutions for it. The selection committee is, however, allowed to consider names which may not be among the applicants.

While the ministry claimed that Bhaker did not apply for the award, her father Ram Kishan Bhaker, a chief engineer in Merchant Navy, said the youngster had followed the due process.

With PTI inputs 

Amid reports that double Olympic-medallist Manu Bhaker has been shockingly ignored for this year’s Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna award, a top sports ministry source has asserted that the names are yet to be finalised and she is likely to be there when the list is unveiled in a week’s time. In August, Bhaker became independent India’s first athlete to win two medals in a single edition of the Olympics with her bronze-winning show in the 10m air pistol individual and 10m air pistol mixed team events. Reports of her omission from the national honours evoked shock with her family insisting that application was duly submitted.

“There is no final list of nominees at this point. Sports minister Mansukh Mandaviya will decide on the recommendations in a day or two and her name, in all likelihood, will be there in the final list,” a ministry source said.

The award selection committee is a 12-member panel headed by retired Supreme Court judge Justice V Ramasubramam. It includes former athletes like women’s hockey captain Rani Rampal among others.

The ministry norms allow athletes to self-nominate instead of relying on federations and other institutions for it. The selection committee is, however, allowed to consider names which may not be among the applicants.

While the ministry claimed that Bhaker did not apply for the award, her father Ram Kishan Bhaker, a chief engineer in Merchant Navy, said the youngster had followed the due process.

“There is no worth of playing Olympic sports in India because despite winning two medals in an Olympics, Manu has been ignored for the Khel Ratna award. There is no point in playing and winning rewards for your country and in turn beg for recognition,” Ram Kishan told PTI.

“She had been applying for all awards, say Khel Ratna, Padma Shri, Padma Bhushan for the last 2-3 years continuously and I have proof of that. This time too, I am confident she would have applied but I can’t show anything as I am at sea right now.

“But even if she hasn’t, the committee should consider her looking at her achievements,” he asserted.

He blamed bureaucracy for the mess-up. “We form a committee but it is the bureaucrats who call the shots. This is not how sports function,” he said.

It is learnt that the committee has recommended India hockey captain Harmanpreet Singh, who led the country to a second consecutive Olympic bronze medal, for the Khel Ratna.

Also nominated for the honour is para athlete Preveen Kumar, who won a gold in the men’s high jump T64 class with an Asian record at Paris Paralympics,.

The awards committee has recommended 30 athletes for Arjuna awards, including 17 from para disciplines.

Wrestler Aman Sehrawat, who won a bronze in the men’s 57kg freestyle category, and shooter Swapnil Kusale, bronze medal-winner in the men’s 50m rifle three position event, along with Bhaker’s mixed team partner Sarabjot Singh have been recommended for the Arjuna award.

Members of the bronze medal-winning Indian hockey team, Jarmanpreet Singh, Sanjay, Rajkumar Pal, Abhishek and one more player have been also recommended for the Arjuna award. 

Caught in a downward spiral of reverses since the historic fourth-place finish in the Tokyo Olympics, Indian women’s hockey team captain Salima Tete on Wednesday attributed it to the lack of fitness and mental toughness. After creating history in Tokyo in 2021, the team failed to qualify for the Paris Olympics this year and also performed poorly in the last FIH Pro League. “Yes, of course we were disappointed but we can’t think about the past and need to move forward. We should move on because if we don’t move on, we can never win a match,” Salima told PTI in an interview ahead of the women’s Asian Champions Trophy in Rajgir, Bihar from November 11 to 20.

“It was very difficult for everyone, not just for me but for everyone in the team. But we have worked on it.” The journey, since the failure to qualify for the Paris Games, wasn’t easy under new chief coach Harendra Singh. But Salima said those setbacks have taught them a big lesson.

“We had to start from the beginning. We had to start from the scratch. And fitness was an area that Harendra sir had pointed out and which needs a lot of work,” she said.

“It was our mistake that we didn’t work on fitness. But since sir came, we have worked a lot on our fitness. In today’s level, if you don’t have fitness, you can’t play hockey because it is a fast sport and you need fitness.” Salima said the entire squad now realises the importance of fitness.

“We do work on our strength. I also noticed that we were not able to lift so much weight. The girls are now squatting more than 100kgs. This shows that we are working on our fitness. This shows that we are getting better.” Harendra understands the significance of mental aspect of the game and that was precisely the reason the Indian women’s hockey team underwent an intensive mental strengthening and team building camp at the prestigious Indian Naval Academy in Kerala from July 14 to 21 this year.

“We didn’t have mental experience. So, it (the camp) was very good. We didn’t know how it was going to be. It was very hard but we handled it. We were not able to sit and relax, we were very busy,” Salima said.

“We have learned that we won’t get anything if we don’t work hard. We won’t be able to keep up.” Asked about the other areas that need work, Salima pointed out: “Our focus is on scoring from inside the circle and also from penalty corners. We have worked on this. We have worked on small, small things.” Salima said it is a new beginning for the Indian women’s team and its sole focus now is on finishing on the podium in 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.

“A new season has started for Indian women’s hockey. The aim is to qualify for the Los Angeles Olympics and finish on the podium there. That’s the view.

“It is a very big thing for us and we are working for it from now. We are starting from zero. Sir tells us that we have to go to the Asian Games, World Cup and the 2028 Olympics,” she said.

India will enter the upcoming Asian Champions Trophy as the defending champions and the skipper said they will settle for nothing less than gold.

“We want to win this championship (ACT). We don’t think about results, we just want to play our game.

“To win this tournament we need team effort. Every player has to show her skill, like my strength is speed, so I have to use my speed to help the team,” she said.

“Everyone has different strengths and we will play to our strengths.” Besides India, Paris Olympics silver medallist China, 2018 Asian Games champion Japan, Malaysia, two-time Olympic silver winner Korea and Thailand are the other participating teams in the tournament.