India’s ambitious campaign to host the 2036 Olympic Games in Ahmedabad has hit a major hurdle after the International Olympic Committee (IOC) raised significant concerns during high-level meetings this week in Lausanne, Switzerland.
According to The Indian Express, an official with direct knowledge of the talks revealed that the IOC flagged three critical issues, governance challenges within the Indian Olympic Association (IOA), persistent anti-doping violations, and the country’s underwhelming performances at recent Olympic Games. These were described as “showstoppers” that could seriously jeopardize India’s chances of securing its first-ever Olympic hosting rights.
“It has been communicated very candidly that while India can continue preparing for its bid to host future Olympics, the country has to address these issues first. This was, in a nutshell, the big takeaway from this meeting,” a source told the paper.
Governance Troubles Cloud the Bid
Led by Gujarat Sports Minister Harsh Sanghvi and IOA President PT Usha, India’s delegation arrived in Lausanne hoping to formally advance its bid through the IOC’s Continuous Dialogue stage, a phase that allows potential host nations to discuss their plans without any immediate commitments.
However, the gathering moved ahead under difficult circumstances. IOC President Kirsty Coventry had just a week earlier called for a pause to the bid process and appointed a working group to review and propose changes to the system.
At the heart of India’s governance troubles is ongoing friction within the IOA. Last October, the IOC reprimanded the IOA for poor governance, halting solidarity payments, financial support programs meant for athlete development. Disputes over unpaid bills, unresolved leadership appointments, unfiled annual reports, and frequent delays of critical meetings have all compounded the problem.
At one point, IOA president PT Usha urged media outlets to stop covering negative stories about the body, warning that continued scrutiny could damage India’s Olympic ambitions.
A source from the meeting said the IOC was clear: “The IOA must get its house in order before serious talks regarding hosting the Olympics take place. That’s the starting point.”
Doping Violations and Poor Olympic Performance
The second major concern flagged was India’s ongoing doping problem. The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) continues to rank India among the world’s worst offenders for doping violations and positivity rates.
The IOC has insisted that robust reforms in testing procedures and athlete education must be made before any bid can be considered credible.
Adding to India’s challenge is its modest Olympic track record. Despite being the world’s most populous nation, India has consistently struggled on the global sporting stage.
At the 2024 Paris Games, Indian athletes brought home just six medals, none of them gold, placing the country a lowly 71st in the final medal standings. This has been a recurring pattern since India’s Olympic debut in 1900.
New Sport Policy, Uncertain Future
In a bid to address these deep-rooted issues, the Indian government this week approved the Khelo Bharat Niti, a national sports policy aimed at better integrating sports with education, enhancing infrastructure, and nurturing a lasting sports culture. However, officials acknowledge that tangible results from the policy may take years to materialize.
While India had long been considered a frontrunner for 2036, helped by the IOC’s desire to tap into the country’s huge market and cricket-mad population, the path forward now looks uncertain.
Cricket’s return to the Olympic program at the Los Angeles 2028 Games was widely seen as a strategic move to engage India. The inclusion is expected to significantly increase the value of India’s broadcast rights for those Games, with the IOC reportedly opening an auction for those rights this week.
Intense Global Competition for 2036
India is not alone in the race for the 2036 Games. Several other nations have expressed interest, including Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, South Africa, Hungary, and Indonesia’s new capital Nusantara. In Europe, Germany, Istanbul, Budapest, Barcelona, and Madrid are also in contention.
Under the IOC’s new host selection process, there’s no fixed timeline for awarding Olympic Games. Previous reforms scrapped the traditional seven-year lead time, with Brisbane 2032 awarded its contract 11 years in advance. Coventry’s newly formed working group will now review the entire bid process, a move that could further complicate the outlook for all interested cities.
For India, unless it swiftly addresses the IOC’s concerns, its Olympic hosting dream may have to wait beyond 2036.