New Delhi: Asian Games gold medallist Neeru Dhanda, badminton star PV Sindhu, Olympic medallist Mirabai Chanu and Indian men’s hockey team captain Harmanpreet Singh have been selected for the Electoral College by the National Sports Federation (NSF) in their respective sports. These athletes have been selected for the selection of the members of the Athletes’ Commission of the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) on November 3.
Electoral Officer Sanjay K Srivastava, who was appointed by the IOA, released the list of 34 athlete representatives on Friday. The Electoral College consists of two nominees from each of the 17 NSFs. Representatives of All India Football Federation, All India Tennis Association, Boxing Federation of India and Table Tennis Federation of India are not included. Sindhu and Mirabai were part of the previous Athletes’ Commission.
Under Article 10.3 of the IOA Athletes’ Commission Rules, approved in September, each participating NSF member can nominate two representatives — one male and one female — through their Athletes’ Commission. The nominated athletes must be those who represent the sport and to which the IOA federation is associated.
Dhanda and Swapnil Kusare have been selected for shooting, while Mirabai has been selected by the Indian Weightlifting Federation and Aman Sehrawat by the Wrestling Federation of India. Hockey India has picked men’s team captain Harmanpreet and women’s team captain Salima Tete. The Badminton Association of India has nominated K Srikanth and Sindhu, while the Fencing Association of India has nominated Bhavani Devi. The Athletics Federation of India will be represented by Sudha Singh and Tajinderpal Singh Toor.
The 34 representatives of the Electoral College will elect 10 members — five men and five women — to the IOA Athletes’ Commission for the 2026-2030 term. Athletes who wish to contest the election will have to submit their nomination papers by 5 pm on October 21. Article 10.1 of the IOA Athletes’ Commission Rules states. The members of the IOA Athletes’ Commission shall be elected by a pool of qualified athlete representatives who shall constitute the Electoral College for such election constituted in accordance with this Rule.
Article 10.4 further clarifies the procedure for the candidates. Any Qualified Athlete Representative from this pool who wishes to contest as a member of the Athletes’ Commission (IOA) will have to submit an application in the format prescribed by the Electoral Officer through the concerned NSF member. Nominating candidates must also have no history of sanctions for violations of the World Anti-Doping Code, the National Anti-Doping Act, 2022, or any applicable integrity regulations. In addition, candidates should never face sanctions for violating the IOA constitution, its bye-laws, or its rules and regulations.
The composition of the 10-member Athletes’ Commission will be based on specific sporting eligibility requirements. At least six elected members — three men and three women — must participate in one of the last three editions of the Olympic Games at the time of their election. The remaining four positions, which are two men and two women, are reserved for an athlete who has won at least one medal in any of the last three editions of the Asian Games, Commonwealth Games, World Championships/Cup or National Games.
Two members of the Athletes’ Commission — one male and one female — will also join the IOA Executive Council. Trap shooter Rajeshwari Kumari, who was elected to the Olympic Council of Asia’s Athletes’ Commission during the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games, will join the IOA Athletes’ Commission as an ex-officio member with voting rights.
[DD news]