The 2036 Olympics in Asia? Indonesia running up against India
India has a very good bid after the Games in Los Angeles and Brisbane, but things could change when the International Olympic Committee (IOC) elects a new president in 2025. Meanwhile, cricket is back as an Olympic sports in 2028. Indonesian President-elect Prabowo Subianto travels to Paris to push his country's bid.
Paris (AsiaNews) – Indonesia has reiterated its interest in hosting the 2036 Olympics. President-elect Prabowo Subianto, who will take office in October, met on Sunday in Paris with the IOC President Thomas Bach. To earn the right to host the Games, Indonesia will have to contend with another Asian giant, India.
Accompanying Prabowo to France was State-Owned Enterprises Minister Erick Thohir. Stressing that Indonesia strives to host international sports, he explained that the country had already hosted several international events at various locations in recent years, including the Superbike and MotoGP World Championships in Mandalika, the 2018 Asian Games, the 2022 ASEAN Paralympic Games, and, last year, the FIBA Basketball World Cup and the FIFA U-17 World Cup.
All these gatherings were organised under the outgoing administration of President Joko Widodo, who during the G20 in Bali in November 2022, expressed the desire to host the Olympic Games in the country's new capital, Nusantara, whose construction, however, is suffering from several delays.
Indonesia is also a candidate to host the 2030 Youth Olympic Games facing Thailand, India, and Mexico. For Raja Sapta Oktohari, president of Indonesia’s National Olympic Committee, this is a priority.
Indonesia’s bid seems to counterbalance India’s among Asian countries while Chile and Turkey have already confirmed their intention to bid for the Games. Egypt and Qatar have also expressed interest in hosting the event.
With several emerging athletes and a fast-growing economy, India has a good chance of getting the 2036 Olympics (2028 is already slated for Los Angeles, US, and the 2032 will take place in Brisbane, Australia).
The IOC will not decide before 2025, probably after the election of a new president.
The Indian government led by the Hindu ultranationalist Bharatiya Janata Party of Prime Minister Narendra Modi has taken the bid for the 2036 Olympics very seriously, including it in election manifesto.
The Sports Authority of India (SAI) has set up an Olympic Mission Cell (MOC), whose main task is to support Indian athletes to win Olympic gold.
In recent months, it has submitted a report to the Ministry of Sports on what to do to win the right to host the Games. This includes building adequate infrastructure, train referees and coaches, prevent sexual harassment, and strengthen anti-doping practices.
The Indian Olympic Association plans to propose the inclusion of several Indian disciplines, like kabaddi, kho Kho, chess, and even yoga. Meanwhile, cricket is set to return to the Olympics as early as 2028.
Cricket was played once in the 1900 Games (only the men's contest), and it is now back in its shortened version, Twenty20 (T20), after years of opposition by the English/Welsh and Indian cricket boards (who feared it would interfere with the ICC[*] World Cup and reduce advertising revenue),
Approval came in October last year at the end of an IOC session, coincidentally held in Mumbai.
For Indian Prime Minister Modi the inclusion of yoga, used in recent years also as a toll of soft power all over the world, represents a great success for the country.
At the Paris Games underway, yoga demonstration classes are set to be held in front of the Louvre.
Meanwhile, French President Emmanuel Macron has expressed support for India’s bid (the two countries are major trading partners, especially in the defence sector), while the Paris 2024 Organising Committee has already made itself available, before the opening of the ongoing Games, to share its expertise with India.
For Indonesia, it will be uphill battle to convince the IOC, but a lot could change after the election of the new IOC president, next year in Athens, Greece.
[*] International Cricket Council.
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30/08/2004
01/06/2005
