Asian Games 2030: India Fails to Submit Bid Before Deadline Due to COVID-19 Crisis; Saudi Arabia and Qatar to Battle for Hosting Rights

India failed to submit a bid on time to host the 2030 Asian Games before the April 22 deadline, the Indian Olympic Association (IOC) president Narinder Batra said citing the coronavirus pandemic as the primary reason for the association’s failure to procure a bid for hosting the continental event. Batra in his explanation also added that the IOA will now prepare to bid for the 2034 Asian Games event. The Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) had earlier in the day announced that Suadi Arabia and Qatar were the only two countries to have submitted a bid for hosting the 2030 Asian Games event. Member of Tokyo Olympics Organising Committee Tests Positive for Coronavirus.

“I wish the two countries the best. We could not complete the formalities after the virus outbreak. We will now aim to bid for the 2034 edition,” Batra was quoted as saying by the Indian Express. He added that the IOA had to change its ‘priorities after the outbreak of the pandemic and ensure the well-being of its athletes first.’

As a result, the organisation failed to complete the necessary formalities in time and submit a bid for hosting the multi-sport event. Among the things that couldn’t be completed in time was obtaining the government’s guarantee for hosting the event, which certainly looked difficult to obtain given the current situation in the country.

IOA had first formulated a plan to bid for the 2030 Asian Games in 2017 after the idea was presented by then Sports Minister Vijay Goel and former IOA chief N Ramachandran. The IOA had also discussed the possibility of hosting multiple events, which included the 2026 Commonwealth Games as well as the Youth Olympics from the same year. But the sudden change in circumstances has led to India missing out on the 2030 Asian Games.

Meanwhile, Qatar and Suadi Arabia will battle for bragging the hosting rights for the 2030 edition of the Asiad. Saudi Arabia, along with Egypt, Bahrain and UAE, had severed ties with Qatar since 2017 after accusing Doha of financing terrorism and building their relationship with regional enemy Iran.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Apr 24, 2020 01:02 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).