India move to host tight-race Olympics show

Image: Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, Ramit.mukherjee.1994, CC BY-SA 4.0

The Indian Olympic Association (IOC) submitting a ‘Letter of Intent’ is the first concrete step towards possibly bringing the 2036 Summer Games to India.

‘The Indian Express’ stated that the letter to the International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) Future Host Commission on October 1^st signals the formal intention to stage the Summer Olympics and Paralympics in India after months of informal dialog with the world body.

New Delhi (India)-based the Indian Olympic Association or Indian Olympic Committee is responsible for selecting athletes to represent India at the Olympic Games, the Asian Games and the other international sports competitions and managing Indian teams at these events. It goes with the name of Team India.

The 2036 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXXVI Olympiad, is a forthcoming international multisport event.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) is the international, non-Governmental sports governing body of the modern Olympic Games. Founded in 1894 by Pierre de Coubertin and Demetrios Vikelas, it is based in Lausanne, Switzerland. The IOC is the authority responsible for organizing the Summer, Winter and Youth Olympics.

The IOC Future Host Commission creates and oversees interest in the future Olympic Games, the Winter Olympic Games and the Youth Olympic Games. It provides recommendations to the IOC Executive Board on the future hosts.

‘The Indian Express’ further stated that however, India is likely to face stiff competition to its bid as the IOC President Thomas Bach has said that the number of countries interested in hosting the 2036 edition is in “double digits”.
 

The Competition

Over the past year, the countries that have shown serious interest in hosting the 2036 Games have been Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Indonesia, Chile, and Turkey.

India’s main competitors are likely to be Saudi Arabia and Qatar as there is an unwritten rule of rotation of continents with the 2036 Games earmarked as Asia’s turn after Paris 2024 (Europe), Los Angeles 2028 (Americas) and Brisbane 2032 (Oceania). That being said, it’s still an unwritten rule so no candidate can be discounted.
 

Qatar

Qatar may turn out to be the stiffest challenge. Despite being unsuccessful in its bids for the Olympics in 2016 and 2020, the tiny Gulf Kingdom has since invested in world-class training facilities and top-notch sporting infrastructure. The country elevated its global profile after successfully hosting major international sporting events, including the FIFA World Cup™ in 2022.

It has yet to bid for the 2036 Olympics officially but several of its officials have expressed confidence that the country can successfully host any mega sporting event in the future.
 

Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia has poured significant resources into global sports and infrastructure in recent years signaling its intent to host mega events and is reportedly planning a bid for the 2036 Games.
 

Istanbul (Turkey)

Istanbul is banking on its experience in hosting major international sporting events. The Turkish Metropolis that connects Europe and Asia has been an Olympic Games candidate City four times without success. It will host the 2027 European Games, the continent’s biggest multisports event, and will co-host the 2032 European Championship in football jointly with Italy.
 

Indonesia

Indonesia has also been quite active in its bid for the Olympics. A delegation with observer status visited the Paris 2024 Games. Indonesia’s inclusion in the race was confirmed when Bach welcomed the country’s readiness to bid at the G20 Summit in Bali in November 2022.
 

What Next for India?

After the submission of the ‘Letter of Intent’, India moves from ‘Informal Dialog’ to the ‘Continuous Dialog’ stage of the host election process. In this stage, the IOC conducts a ‘feasibility study’ of the progress of projects associated with the Games in the potential host. Independent sources will be consulted on a wide-ranging number of issues, including human rights, Business for Social Responsibility (BSR – a global nonprofit organization that helps businesses develop sustainable practices and solutions) and sustainability through the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN – an international organization based in Gland, Switzerland, working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natural resources).

When it’s felt that a project is ready to move to the next stage, the Future Host Commission can recommend to the IOC Executive Board (EB) to open a Targeted Dialog for a specific edition/year. From this point, the Interested Party is known as a ‘Preferred Host’ for the Games edition.

At the end of the Targeted Dialog, following a detailed report and recommendation by the Future Host Commission, the IOC Executive Board will decide whether to propose one or more hosts for election by all the IOC members at an IOC Session. If the Executive Board calls an election, the Preferred Hosts will be invited to a meeting to present their projects and will discuss them with all the IOC Members. They will then give a final presentation to the IOC Session which will be followed by the IOC Members voting by secret ballot. If elected, the Host will immediately sign a contract with the IOC.
 

Financial Aspect

Hosting a mega event like the Olympics appeals more to pride than economics, though in some rare cases, the venture has been profitable too. The Games drive tourism, create jobs and lead to development of the infrastructure.

However, there is also a huge downside to organizing such a huge event, especially if the numbers don’t add up in the host nation’s financial plans.

Take for example the Montreal (Canada) Games of 1976. They’re almost synonymous with economic decline following an Olympics bust. Budgets spiraled out of control and debts related to the Games ballooned. The main Olympic stadium, with an estimated budget of $250 million at the time, ended up costing $1.4 billion and took 30 years to be fully paid off.

Then there were the 2004 Olympic Games held in Athens (Greece). Some have speculated that the financial hole dug by excessive and irresponsible spending – over $15 billion at the time – triggered the enormous Greek financial crises of the 2000s and 2010s.

Not all Games are a loss-making exercise though. The 2012 London (UK) Olympics is an example of the positive effects the Games can have on a Host City. Most of the sporting venues built were dynamic but temporary. In addition to these temporary venues, the London authorities also ensured that the Olympic Stadium itself could be utilized fully as a long-term sports venue. Although the stadium was a permanent structure it was designed as a versatile arena hosting football, rock concerts, the Rugby World Cup, and even the Major League Baseball (MLB) games.

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• 2036 Summer Games
• Indian Olympic Association
• Letter of Intent

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