Better marketing for the Asian Games and getting more sponsors on board will be high on the agenda when Randhir Singh takes over as president of the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) on Sunday, the veteran administrator told Reuters. The 77-year-old Indian has been the OCA acting president since 2021, filling in for Kuwait's Sheikh Ahmad Al-Fahad Al-Sabah, who was handed a 15-year ban from sports administration in May this year over ethics breaches.
A five-time Olympic shooter, Singh is the lone eligible candidate for the OCA president's post and his elevation will be confirmed in Sunday's OCA general assembly in New Delhi. "We are financially very strong as it is," Singh told Reuters ahead of the OCA gathering.
"The idea now is to get more and more sponsors on board, and you can't do it if you don't sell the Games. People should be more aware of these Games. If awareness comes, money would automatically follow."
The OCA also hosts the Asian Winter Games, Beach Games, Youth Games, Indoor Games and Martial Arts Games.
Singh was particularly bullish about the appeal of the Asian Games, which is second in size only to the Summer Olympics. "Hangzhou raised the bar last year and Nagoya-Aichi will have a tough time to match it," he said referring to the 2022 and the 2026 hosts of the Games respectively.
The benchmark will be further raised by Doha and Riyadh in the subsequent Games, Singh predicted.
A former Asian Games gold medallist himself, Singh said Olympic sport in the continent was in robust health. He singled out the performance of China, who equalled the Unites States' tally of 40 gold at the Paris Olympics but finished behind on silver medal count.
"Financially we are very strong, the standard of our game is among the best in the world, and our athletes are doing extremely well as you saw in Paris."
The enduring appeal of the Games and the infrastructure in the continent put the OCA in an enviable position, Singh said. "I believe we are the only continent that has enough countries to host any Games at any given point of time," he said.
"China, Qatar and Saudi Arabia - these three countries are in a position to hold any Games any time. We don't have to worry if a host country pulls out at the last moment for some reason. Several Asian countries are capable of hosting the Olympics. It's a great position to be in."
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