New Delhi, Nov 3 Olympic medallists PV Sindhu and Mirabai Chanu were among 10 sportspersons declared elected unopposed as members of the Athletes’ Commission of the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) here on Tuesday.
With former track and field athlete Sudha Singh pulling out of the race late Monday night, there was no need to conduct the polls as only 10 candidates were left in the fray for the same number of seats.
Returning Officer Sanjay K Srivastava on Tuesday declared all the 10 candidates — five male and five female — to have been elected unopposed for a four-year term of 2026-2030.
Earlier on Monday, ace shuttler Kidambi Srikanth withdrew his candidature.
Two Indians in the Olympic Council of Asia’s (OCA) Athletes’ Commission — Vice Chair Shiva Keshavan and recently-appointed Rajeshwari Kumari — will be the ex-officio members of the IOA’s Athletes’ Commission.
The chairperson and vice chairperson — one male and one female in either of the two — of the Athletes’ Commission shall be made members of the IOA Executive Council.
Two members — one male and one female — of the Athletes’ Commission will become members of the IOA General Body with voting rights. They will take part in the IOA Executive Council elections on December 5 as Athletes’ Commission representatives.
The elections for the chairperson and vice chairperson of the Athletes’ Commission, as well as the two representatives for the IOA General Body will be held on November 7 in virtual mode.
Both Keshavan and Kumari have voting rights in the elections for the chairperson and vice chairperson of the Athletes’ Commission, as well as the two representatives for the IOA General Body. But they cannot contest for elections for the chairperson and vice chairperson of the Athletes’ Commission, as well as the two representatives for the IOA General Body.
Besides ace shuttler Sindhu and weightlifter Chanu, the other members of the Athletes’ Commission are men’s and women’s hockey captains Harmanpreet Singh and Salima Tete, shooter Swapnil Kusale, fencer Bhavani Devi, shot putter Tajinderpal Singh Toor, former archer Bombayla Devi, swimmer Sajan Prakash and Manjeet Singh from kayaking and canoeing.
Sindhu, Chanu and Bhavani were also members of the outgoing Athletes’ Commission headed by celebrated boxer MC Mary Kom.
Harmanpreet, Sajan and Toor were elected unopposed as three male athletes who have participated in at least one of the last three editions of the Olympic Games.
Sindhu, Chanu and Bombayla Devi were elected unopposed as three female athletes who have participated in at least one of the last three editions of the Olympic Games.
Manjeet and Kusale were the only two male candidates who filed nominations under the category of sportspersons who have won at least one medal in any of the last three editions of the Asian Games, Commonwealth Games, World Championships/Cups or National Games.
Salima and Bhavani were the only two female candidates who filed nominations under the category of sportspersons who have won at least one medal in any of the last three editions of the Asian Games, Commonwealth Games, World Championships/Cups or National Games.
Under the IOA’s election rules, the 10-member Athletes’ Commission should have at least four athletes — two male and two female — who have won at least one medal in any of the last three editions of the Asian Games, Commonwealth Games, World Championships/Cups or National Games.
The remaining six members — three male and three female — should have participated in at least one of the last three editions of the Olympic Games.
On October 16, Srivastava had issued a list of 34 electoral college members — two each from 17 National Sports Federations — for the Athletes’ Commission election. But the 34 athletes’ representatives from their respective NSFs did not have to cast their votes on Tuesday as all the 10 members of the Athletes’ Commission were elected unopposed.
“Under the circumstances … the election of the Athletes’ Commission for 10 members, five (5) males and five (5) females, as scheduled on 3rd November 2026, will not serve any purpose as there is only one (1) candidate against one (1) post in each category of the members of the Athletes’ Commission,” the Returning Officer said.
IOA Athletes’ Commission members: PV Sindhu (badminton), Mirabai Chanu (weightlifting), Harmanpreet Singh (hockey), Salima Tete (hockey), Swapnil Kusale (shooting), Bhavani Devi (fencing), Tajinderpal Singh Toor (athletics), Bombayla Devi (archery), Sajan Prakash (swimming) and Manjeet Singh (kayaking and canoeing).
Elections for AC chair and vice chair, as well as representative in IOA GB
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Candidates can file their nominations on November 4 and 5, and the final list of contestants will be published on November 6.
A member can contest only one of the two elections — either for the chairperson and vice chairperson of the Athletes’ Commission; or for two representatives in the IOA General Body. The number of voters is 12 — 10 from IOA Athletes’ Commission and two from OCA Athletes’ Commission.
Moreover, the candidate for the post of chairperson of the Athletes’ Commission will have to be from among the six members in the Olympic category (who have participated in at least one of the last three editions of the Olympic Games).
Interestingly, the 24-year-old Salima Tete cannot stand for the post of chairperson and vice chairperson of the Athletes’ Commission as she is below the eligible age of 25. But she can contest for the election of two representatives for the IOA General Body as the eligible age in that case is 18 years.
(PTI News)
