IOA to officially bid for Commonwealth Games 2030; Ahmedabad, Bhubaneswar, Delhi in contention for host city

New Delhi, Aug 13 (IANS) The Indian Olympic Association (IOA) has decided to officially make a bid for the upcoming Commonwealth Games of 2030, hoping to bring back the mega event to the country after 20 years.

The IOA approved the bid to host CWG 2030 during its Special General Meeting (SGM) in New Delhi on Wednesday.

"The proposal to approve the bid was moved by the President and was okayed by all the members present with a unanimous voice vote," said a senior IOA official on condition of anonymity for not being the official spokesperson.

The IOA has already submitted an Expression of Interest to host the CWG 2030 and now has until August 31 to put up the final bid proposal. The IOA is currently in a continuous active dialogue with the International Olympic Committee's (IOC) Future Games Commission for hosting the 2036 Summer Olympic Games in Ahmedabad.

However, IOA president PT Usha refused to confirm that Ahmedabad will also be the host city for CWG 2030 and said Bhubaneswar and Delhi are also in contention, as they have good facilities. New Delhi hosted the Commonwealth Games in 2010 and has twice hosted the Asian Games in 1950 and 1982.

“I am happy that everybody is unified on this. It was a unanimous decision, and our preparations will go ahead. We can’t just tell whether Ahmedabad will be the host city. We have good facilities in Bhubaneswar and even in Delhi,” IOA President PT Usha told the media after the meeting.

Apart from India, Nigeria and two other countries had reportedly expressed interest in hosting the multi-sport extravaganza in 2030. Canada had initially expressed their interest but withdrew from the race in June this year.

The final host nation for the 2030 Commonwealth Games will be decided by the General Assembly of Commonwealth Sport in the last week of November in Glasgow.

Meanwhile, a team of officials from Commonwealth Sport, led by Director of Games Darren Hall, recently visited Ahmedabad to inspect proposed venues and meet Gujarat government representatives. A larger delegation is expected later this month.

The Commonwealth Games, first hosted as British Empire Games in 1930, will see its 24th edition held in 2030. The last edition was held in Birmingham, UK, in 2022, and the upcoming one is scheduled to be held in Glasgow, Scotland, in 2026.

At Birmingham 2022, India won 61 medals - 22 gold, 16 silver, and 23 bronze. The country's best performance was in the 2010 Games in Delhi when the tally crossed 100, finishing second behind Australia with 38 gold, 27 silver, and 36 bronze.

Glasgow will be hosting the 23rd edition of the CWG in 2026, a scaled-down edition with several sports like hockey, badminton, wrestling, and shooting cut from the programme.

The IOA officials have confirmed that they will go all out and include all the major sports in the programme.

--IANS

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