PT Usha keeps Indian Olympic Association chief re-election bid alive with ice hockey body nomination

Former Olympic track athlete PT Usha has kept her Indian Olympic Association chief re-election bid alive after being nominated on Thursday by the Ice Hockey Association of India as one of its two representatives to the general body, PTI reported.

She was elected as the president of the Indian Olympic Association in 2022, becoming the first woman to head the organisation. The next elections for the association’s executive council are scheduled to be held on December 5.

The same year, she was nominated to the Rajya Sabha. The athlete had said she had agreed to take up the presidency of the Indian Olympic Association at the “insistence” of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, The Tribune reported.

The Indian Olympic Association oversees the country’s participation in the Olympic Games and coordinates the administration of Olympic sports in India.

Usha’s nomination came days after she failed to secure one of the four available places for women in the sportspersons of outstanding merit elections. Former athletes Anju Bobby George, Saina Nehwal, Dola Banerjee and Rani Rampal were elected, The Times of India reported.

Her defeat weakened her chances of securing another term as the Indian Olympic Association president, as the sportspersons of merit representatives also form part of the electoral college for the executive council election.

However, Usha has now been nominated as the female representative of the Ice Hockey Association of India to the Indian Olympic Association’s general body, while its secretary general, Harjinder Singh, will be the male representative, PTI reported.

The nomination gives her a place in the general body and keeps her eligible to contest the Indian Olympic Association presidential election.

Usha’s nomination came amid differences within the Indian Olympic Association following the sportspersons of merit elections.

She had written to the International Olympic Committee, raising concerns about the conduct of the elections, Sportstar reported.

Following her defeat, she had also asked Modi to intervene, The Tribune reported.

“Winning and losing is normal but results have to be fair,” she told the newspaper. “I am certain that this [result] is fraudulent.”

She claimed that the result was “an insult to the PM’s initiative”.

Olympic gold medallist Abhinav Bindra had also called for transparency and fairness in sports governance elections, pointing to an alleged inconsistency between the Indian Olympic Association’s Constitution and the rules followed during the sportspersons of merit polls, The Telegraph reported.

The Ice Hockey Association of India has also faced disputes over its recognition, with multiple factions claiming to represent the national federation.

The Indian Olympic Association recognises the Ice Hockey Association of India led by Gurpreet Singh Bakshi, while the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports does not recognise any national ice hockey body, PTI reported.

Edited by Nachiket Deuskar.