Olympics 2036: India submits ’Letter of Intent’ to IOC to host summer games — Report

Expressing its desire to host the 2036 Olympic and Paralympic Games, India has formally submitted a ‘Letter of Intent’ to the International Olympic Committee’s Future Host Commission.

This is India’s first concrete step in an ambitious plan after months of informal dialogue with the IOC, reported PTI. According to a sports ministry source, the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) submitted the LOI on 1 October.

“This monumental opportunity could bring substantial benefits, fostering economic growth, social progress, and youth empowerment across the country,” PTI quoted the source as saying.

In 2023, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had first talked about his government’s aspiration to host the 2036 Olympics.

Informal Dialogue stage:

Despite submitting the LOI, India will have to wait until the IOC elections next year and also face competition from several other nations, such as Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Turkey, which are positioning themselves as strong contenders to host the sporting event.

By submitting the LOI, India has progressed from the “Informal Dialogue” stage to the “Continuous Dialogue” stage of the host election process.

As per details, the IOC, in this stage, conducts a “feasibility study” of the progress of projects associated with the Games in the potential host.

“As part of the Feasibility Assessment, independent sources in a wide-ranging number of areas are taken into consideration, including in human rights, through Business for Social Responsibility (BSR), and sustainability, through the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN),” the IOC states on its official website.

Next phase:

In the next phase, the IOC will initiate the ‘Targetted Dialogue’, where a prospective nation would require the submission of an edition-specific formal bid, which the Future Host Commission would assess.

The process would finally end with a host election.

It is known that India’s plan has been backed by the current IOC head, Thomas Bach. India hosted an international multi-sport extravaganza – Commonwealth Games – back in 2010.

India is mulling to pull for Ahmedabad as host city for the 2036 Olympics.

Earlier in 2024, India’s top sports administrators, including IOA President PT Usha, were at the Paris Olympics to lobby for the country and even pushed for the inclusion of Indigenous disciplines like yoga, kho kho, and kabaddi if the bid is successful.

The Sports Authority of India’s Mission Olympic Cell (MOC) has even presented a detailed report on the measures needed to successfully bid new sports minister Mansukh Mandaviya.

In this document, MOC has identified six disciplines, including yoga, kho kho, kabaddi, chess, T20 cricket and squash for inclusion in the Games if the country gets to host the quadrennial extravaganza.

Meanwhile, the IOA has been mired in controversy owing to a tug of war between Usha and the body’s Executive Council following the body’s steadfast refusal to ratify the appointment of her choice for the CEO’s position, Raghuram Iyer.