Union Sports Minister Anurag Thakur highlighted the significance of hosting the Olympics and said India will be fully prepared to bring the Games to the country in 2036. The Sports Minister’s comments come after Prime Minister Narendra Modi signalled the government’s intentions to bid for the Olympic Games during an International Olympic Committee session in Mumbai last year.
India have never hosted the Olympic Games in the past, but the Asian giants are keen on bidding to host the 2032 Games. 4 potential sites have been identified in Gujarat even though Prime Minister Modi did not mention a candidate city during his address at the IOC session last October.
India last hosted a major multi-sport event in 2010 when the Commonwealth Games were held in New Delhi. India also hosted the Under-17 FIFA World Cup in 2017, but hosting an event of the Olympic Games’s magnitude will require the combined efforts of a lot of stakeholders.
“For 2036 Olympics India needs to be ready. Organising the Olympics will be a huge thing and India is ready for that. Whenever the bidding process begins, India will certainly bid with full power and will organise Olympics in India,” Anurag Thakur said on Tuesday.
PM Modi, during his speech in the IOC session, also said that India will be bidding to host the Youth Olympics in 2029, which will serve a dress rehearsal for the global sporting spectacle.
While Paris will host the 2024 Olympics in August, Los Angeles came out trumps in the bidding race for the host city for the 2028 Games. Brisbane was announced as the Olympics host in 2021 without a rival bid.
Both Los Angeles and Brisbane have got 11 years’ time to prepare for the Games as their bids were confirmed in 2017 and 2021, respectively.
Unlike in the past, there is no fixed election cycle for choosing the Olympics bids. This enables the International Olympic Committee to adapt to the natural pace of each potential host, to bring the right project and partner for the Olympic Games at the right time, and to ensure strategic benefit for the Olympic Movement. The timing depends on a number of factors, including global events.
