Page 2 - Commonwealth Games

India's Olmypics preparations should be continuous process: Ex-Olympians

India's preparation for the Olympics should be a continuous process and the authorities should not wake up just months before the commencement of the 'greatest show on earth', former Olympians said. They were speaking at a panel discussion here "In search of glory: India's prospects in the 2024 Olympics" organised by Indian Chamber of Commerce at a city hotel on Friday night. Hockey icon Gurbux Singh, a member of the gold-winning hockey team in 1964 Olympics and bronze-winning team in 1968 Olympics, underscored the importance of inculcating a sports culture among the youth, to have sporting infrastructure and grounds at every educational institution. "We wake up when the Olympics comes. The whole country wakes up. That attitude must change," he said, adding that 90 per cent of parents want their children to pursue vocations other than sports. About India's prospects in hockey in the 2024 Olympics, Singh said, "We are in a difficult group and our first target should be to secure a .

In his 5th Olympics, flagbearer Sharath Kamal feels his best is yet to come

Set for his fifth Olympic appearance in Paris, Indian flagbearer Achanta Sharath Kamal feels he is scaling new heights with each passing year and believes his "best is yet to come." The 41-year-old turned the clock back to win three gold medals, including one in men's singles, at the Birmingham Commonwealth Games in 2022. He returned empty-handed at last year's Asian Games in Hangzhou, but Sharath helped Indian men's team clinch a historic Paris Olympics quota via world rankings following their last-16 finish at the World Table Tennis Championships in Busan in February. "I am happy that I'm scaling new heights with each passing year, besides improving both physically and mentally. I hope the best is yet to come," the top-ranked Indian told PTI. "To highlight one particular achievement from my career would not do justice to my other achievements. The Asian Games bronze (Jakarta 2018) and Commonwealth Games gold are two of the highs of my career," said the Sharath, who boasts of 13 C

US Open: Rajawat, Malvika into quarters; Gayatri-Treesa too advance

India's Priyanshu Rajawat has stormed into the men's singles quarterfinals with a straight-game win over Chinese Taipei's Huang Yu Kai in the US Open Super 300 badminton tournament here. Eighth seed Rajawat, who had won the Orleans Masters in 2023, notched up a 21-18 21-16 win over Huang to set up a clash with fourth seed Lei Lan Xi of China. Commonwealth Games bronze medallists Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand also advanced to the women's doubles quarterfinals with a 16-21 21-11 21-19 win over Chinese Taipei's Hsieh Pei Shan and Hung En-Tzu in the second round. The second seeded Indian pair, who received a bye in the opening round, will next face sixth seeded Japanese Rui Hirokami and Yuna Kato. Also making it to the last eight is Malvika Bansod, seeded seventh. She beat Czech Republic's Tereza Svabikova 15-21 21-19 21-14 in a women's singles match. Malvika will face a tough test against third seed Kristy Gilmour of Scotland.

Commonwealth Games Village designated strong room, traffic advisory issued

The Delhi Police has issued a traffic advisory for Friday for the area around the Commonwealth Games Village, which has been designated as a strong room-cum-counting centre for the Lok Sabha elections. In a post on X, the Delhi Traffic Police on Thursday said, "In view of the Lok Sabha elections, the Commonwealth Games Village is a strong room-cum-counting centre. On 24.05.24, from 9 am to 5 pm, movement of a large number of buses and other vehicles related to election duties are expected." The police advised commuters travelling from Sarai Kale Khan/MGM towards National Highway-24 to proceed straight to Akshardham flyover and take a left turn to reach Pusta Road, ITO or Vikas Marg. People coming from the ITO or Pusta Road side should proceed up to the Akshardham flyover, take a U-turn after crossing the flyover, and then continue on National Highway-24 towards Delhi, it added. The police requested the commuters to cooperate by avoiding the roads mentioned and utilising public ...

India's technical assistance important, says Commonwealth chief

India's technical assistance is critically important to the Commonwealth, the Secretary General of the 56-member organisation said, asserting that it gives a huge amount of hope to many of the developing states to leapfrog the developmental challenges which have already been undertaken and surpassed by India. Patricia Scotland's remarks came as she hosted the 22nd Conference of Commonwealth Education Ministers meeting in London on the theme of Driving Resilience, Equity, and Skills for an Inclusive Future. Scotland welcomed India's willingness to share technological developments with the Commonwealth in an open-source way and hoped for greater commitment towards the organisation's educational goals. At the two-day meeting at the Commonwealth Secretariat Marlborough House headquarters in London which opened on Thursday, she called on ministers to help eliminate the barriers that impede access to education, harness technology and encourage lifelong learning. India has made it clear t

Commonwealth Games Federation to announce new 2026 host next month

The Commonwealth Games Federation plans to announce a new host for its 2026 event next month, saying it has multiple proposals to replace Australia's Victoria state. The CGF on Monday said it was keeping the proposals confidential. Victoria state lawmakers last July withdrew from plans to host the 2026 Games in three regional hubs, citing escalating costs. Significant progress has been made and we are excited by the early concepts, which aim to reset and reframe the Games, the CGF said in a statement following its April meeting. We are working collaboratively with the relevant (members) to undertake further detailed assessments, and aim to announce the 2026 Commonwealth Games host in May. Victoria state agreed to a compensation package with the Commonwealth Games Federation, which will help offset costs for the next hosts. Australia's Gold Coast, which held the 2018 Commonwealth Games, was flagged as a potential host for 2026 but couldn't get state or federal funding. The CGF said

Decision to cancel 2026 CWG in Australia based on overstated cost estimates

An inquiry into the Australian state of Victoria's decision to cancel its planned hosting of the 2026 Commonwealth Games said it cost the state 589 million Australian dollars ($385 million) and the price estimate that resulted in it being shelved was overstated and not transparent. Victoria's Auditor-General's Office on Wednesday said agencies failed to work together to give frank, full and timely advice to the government before it decided to host the games. The total cost of the games to Victorians is over $589 million, the office said in a report. This waste would have been avoided." In 2022 the Labor government led by then-Premier Daniel Andrews agreed to host the 2026 Games in regional cities in Victoria at an expected cost of about A$2.6 billion ($1.7 billion). But it pulled out in July 2023 after saying the figure had blown out to A$6.9 billion ($4.5 billion), and instead had to compensate the Commonwealth Games Federation for breaking the contract. Craig Phillips, CEO of ...

Australia unlikely to host 2026 Commonwealth Games as Gold Coast withdraws

Australia is unlikely to be able to host the 2026 Commonwealth Games and sports officials have called on the international federation to consider bids from other countries. Commonwealth Games Australia chief executive Craig Phillips made the comments Monday after Gold Coast confirmed it had scrapped its plans to pick up the games after Victoria state withdrew as host in July. Phillips said while Australia hasn't entirely given up on hosting, the Commonwealth Games Federation should seriously consider other offers. We have indicated to (the CGF)... they would have our support in doing that, Phillips told the Australian Associated Press. It's our preference to host here and we will keep going while we think we have got options to explore. But if they have a better option, then they should seriously consider it. Gold Coast Mayor Tom Tate announced Sunday that the city had scrapped its bid to host the Games after failing to secure support from state or federal governments. Gold Coast,

Parliamentary standing committees that scrutinise Bills get less to do

The 17th Lok Sabha has the worst record compared to the previous three Houses in referring legislation to the institution framework

Commonwealth Games: Why the event is struggling to find a host country

Alberta on Friday pulled the pin on a bid for the 2030 Games, stating the $2.68 billion price tag was too expensive for taxpayers

India will host Olympics in future, says Sports Minister Anurag Thakur

India will organise the Olympics in future, Sports Minister Anurag Thakur said on Thursday, insisting that hosting quality tournaments across various disciplines will help the country become a sporting super power. Earlier this month, Australia's Victoria state withdrew as host of the 2026 Commonwealth Games due to increasing cost. Replying to PTI's query if India is thinking of hosting the 2026 CWG, Thakur said "India will organise the Olympics in future." "We are working in that direction and when the right time comes we will give you the good news. India wants to host the Olympics. "Our athletes are performing well and the federations are becoming more accountable. There is transparency, accountability and professionalism," Thakur said on the sidelines of the opening ceremony of the Asian Junior and Youth Weightlifting Championships. India is hosting the Asian Junior and Youth Weightlifting Championships for the first time from July 28 to August 5 at the Gautam Buddha Universit

Turning 'Victoria's lemon into lemonade': Gold Coast pitch to host CWG 2026

Tate, who was the mayor of the city when it hosted the 2018 Commonwealth Games, said that he was ready to turn, 'Victoria's lemon into lemonade' for the Gold Coast

CWG 2026: Ahmedabad likely to bid for Commonwealth Games - Report

Gujarat is looking to bid for Ahmedabad to host the 2026 Commonwealth Games given it has already started putting up infrastructure in order to bid for the 2036 Olympics

Here's why Australia's Victoria cancels hosting of Commonwealth Games 2026

Premier Daniel Andrews said that Victoria terminated its deal to host the muti-team event as the cost had sky-rocketed to around 7 billion Australian dollars from 2.6 billion Australian dollars

Asian Games: Why Indian cricket team's presence could be a game changer

It is learnt that BCCI will send both men's and women's teams to the Asian Games 2023 in Hangzhou, China

Wrestler's protest: Geeta Phogat, husband detained at Singhu border

Wrestler Geeta Phogat, who won India's first ever gold medal in wrestling at the Commonwealth Games in 2010, was taken into police custody at Singhu border, as per Delhi Police sources

King Charles III's Coronation screen to have Commonwealth symbolism

The cloth screen to be used for the most sacred part of the religious ceremony at the Coronation of King Charles III at Westminster Abbey in London on May 6 will have strong Commonwealth symbolism with each of the member-country names, including India, sewn into the fabric, Buckingham Palace has revealed. The "anointing screen" was unveiled this weekend to show a central design of a tree with branches filled with 56 leaves representing the Commonwealth nations, which the palace said is reflective of the 74-year-old monarch's "deep affection" for the organisation. The anointing, historically regarded as a moment between the Sovereign and God with a screen or canopy in place given its sanctity, takes place before the crowning of a British monarch. Each and every element of the design has been specifically chosen to symbolise aspects of this historic Coronation and the Commonwealth, from the birds that symbolise the joy and interaction among members of a community living in harmony, to

Double Delight: Nitu Ghanghas, Saweety Boora become world champions

Nitu Ghanghas (48kg) and the seasoned Saweety Boora (81kg) etched their names in history as they were crowned world champions after notching contrasting wins at the marquee tournament here on Saturday. Commonwealth Games gold medallist Nitu put up a stupendous performance to see off Mongolia's Lutsaikhan Altansetseg 5-0 and claim the title for the minimum weight category in front of a packed crowd, with Beijing Olympics bronze medallist and Nitu's idol Vijender Singh also present. Saweety made it two out of two for the hosts as she warded off a challenge from two-time medallist China's Wang Lina. In the first bout of the day, Nitu started off aggressively and used her combination of punches, landing jabs and hooks effectively. The 22-year-old Bhiwani boxer was able to take the first round 5-0. She began the second round with a series of straight jabs. When Altansetseg attacked, the Indian southpaw countered with right hooks. The two boxers played from a close range and indulged in

Hockey Yearender: Women, juniors outshine men; administration sees overhaul

For Indian hockey, it was a year where the Women's team dominated the headlines as they won bronze in Commonwealth Games, gold at the Nations Cup, and bronze in Asia Cup

Many hits and some misses: Indian cricket's journey through the year 2022

The most significant highlight of the year remained Virat Kohli's return to form, but there were some setbacks as well. Let's find out