Page 35 - Olympics

Budweiser's AB InBev becomes Olympics' first beer brand global sponsor

The International Olympic Committee has signed Anheuser-Busch InBev as the first beer brand in the 40-year history of its sponsorship program, which earns billions of dollars for the organization and international sports. The deal was announced Friday by the IOC and AB InBev the Belgium-based brewing giant whose brands include Budweiser, Corona, Michelob and Modelo for the next three Summer and Winter Games. The Paris Olympics open on July 26, and the deal also includes the 2026 Winter Games in northern Italy, then the likely prize asset the Los Angeles Olympics in 2028. Corona Cero, the zero-alcohol version of the Corona brand that is ranked second most valuable worldwide in the brewing industry, will be global beer sponsor of the Olympic Games, the heads of the IOC and AB InBev said. The value of the deal was not disclosed, though the IOC has said some of its sponsors pay more than $300 million to be in the TOP (The Olympic Partner) program for a four-year commercial ...

IOA cannot exercise control over WFI, UWW should lift ban: WFI chief

The WFI has reminded United World Wrestling that as per the international body's rules and the IOC charter, the Indian Olympic Association "cannot exercise any control" on the newly-elected body, and asked the UWW to immediately lift the provisional suspension it imposed in August last year. The newly-elected Wrestling Federation of India chief Sanjay Singh, whose body was suspended by the sports ministry three days after it came to power and an IOA ad-hoc panel was re-instituted to run the sport, in his letter to UWW president Nenad Lalovic has also said that any influence by the IOA in wrestling should be deemed "illegal" by UWW. "Pursuant to the election, the newly-elected body has taken charge of the WFI and is managing its affairs, and we await the lifting of the provisional suspension imposed by the UWW," said Sanjay Singh in his letter to Lalovic on Friday, a copy of which is with PTI. "We understand that we continue to be an affiliated member of the UWW. However, there is a

Senior national wrestling camps to commence in Patiala, Sonepat from Feb 9

The national wrestling camps for men and women will commence in Sonepat and Patiala respectively from February 9, according to the IOA-constituted ad-hoc committee for the sport here on Monday. With the Asian Olympics Qualifying and World Qualifying tournaments around the corner, the camps will begin almost immediately after the conclusion of the senior National Championships in Jaipur on February 5. The ad-hoc panel, headed by Wushu Association of India chief Bhupender Singh Bajwa with former hockey player MM Somaya and ex-shuttler Manjusha Kanwar being the other members, is taking all the crucial decisions after the newly-elected Sanjay Singh-led Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) was suspended by the Sports Ministry within three days of the polls. "Following the conclusion of the Senior National Championships, the National Coaching Camp (NCC) will be conducted. The men's camp (Greco-Roman and free-style) will be stationed at SAI NRC Sonepat, while the women's camp will be held

Punia urges govt to restart wrestling activities in view of Paris Olympics

Olympic medallist Bajrang Punia on Saturday urged the Sports Ministry to restart the wrestling activities in the country with just seven months remaining for next year's Paris Games, and said no one seemed to have taken the preparations for the quadrennial showpiece seriously. Wrestling action has come to a standstill for the last several months owing to the turmoil within the fraternity following the grapplers' protests against former president Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh. Even the election of a new Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) committee could not restore normalcy as the Sports Ministry suspended the Sanjay Singh-led panel citing the violation of its own constitution in announcing the national U-15 and U-20 Championships. "Wrestling activities have come to a standstill for the last several months. Neither has any nationals been held nor have any camps been organised to prepare the players (for Paris Olympics)," Punia wrote on his 'X' account. Punia, who had decided to return

Logging in: New career path as esports gain recognition in multisport event

It has been a year since esport was officially recognised as a multisport event in India. For many, it has since become a career option

Push to safeguard Paris Olympics promises of jobs, new starts after riots

With a name that doesn't ring old-school French like Jean, Pierre or Jacques, and a home address in a tough suburb of Paris where riots flared, Salah Benkadmir is discovering how hard it can be to make prospective employers in France see beyond their prejudices. Despite having a high school diploma in sales and work experience as a vendor on his resume, the 19-year-old job seeker says that when he sends it to stores making hires, often no one calls him back. I feel like I've got a label stuck to me. It is very unpleasant," he says. But with the Olympic Games soon to hit Paris, Benkadmir thinks his fortunes may be about to improve. Organizers urgently need thousands of security guards to help keep athletes and spectators safe and reduce the likelihood of another deadly extremist attack in the French capital. Demand for people at checkpoints, to scan tickets and help manage crowds is so great that France's state employment agency is offering free and expedited security guard training

India's Olympic bid: Gujarat's Sardar Patel complex to be venue, says Shah

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Sunday expressed hope the 2036 Olympics will be held in the Sardar Patel complex coming up close to the imposing Narendra Modi cricket stadium here. In October, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had said during an event in Mumbai that the country would submit a bid to host the Olympics that year. The Gujarat government has engaged the services of some of the finest firms to create sports infrastructure to ensure it can host the event. Speaking at the inauguration of the Sansad Khel Pratiyogita, a sports event organised in his Gandhinagar Lok Sabha constituency, Shah said Modi had asked all MPs to promote sports in their areas. "This competition will last for one-and-half months. I will join you after the finals. Sports brings out sportsmanship in us. It is important to lose with grace and have a winning habit. Those who play badly in sports or politics are said to be lacking in sportsmanship," Shah said. Gujarat has the world's biggest cricket arena in t

After Punia, Deaflympics gold winner Virender Singh to return Padma Shri

Deaflympics gold medallist Virender Singh Yadav, better known as Goonga Pehlwan, has now decided to return his Padma Shri to the government, showing solidarity with the country's top wrestlers who have objected to election of Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh loyalist Sanjay Singh as WFI president. Throwing his weight behind Olympic bronze medallist grappler Sakshi Malik, who announced her retirement from the sport soon after Sanjay Singh's victory in the recent WFI polls, Virender said he would return the honour as a mark of protest against the election of Brij Bhushan's close aide. Bajrang Punia, one of the prominent faces of the protest against the former WFI chief, had returned his Padma Shri on Friday. "I will also return the Padma Shri for my sister and the country's daughter. Honourable Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi ji, I am proud of your daughter and my sister Sakshi Malikkh," Virender wrote on X. He also urged the country's iconic sports personalities such as Sachin Tendulkar

Russian athletes can compete at Paris Olympics with approved neutral status

Some Russian athletes will be allowed to compete at the 2024 Paris Olympics, the IOC said Friday, in a decision that removed the option of a blanket ban over the invasion of Ukraine. The International Olympic Committee's decision confirms moves it started one year ago to reintegrate Russia and its military ally Belarus into global sports, and nine months after it urged sports governing bodies to look at ways to let individual athletes compete. It is up to each Olympic sport's governing body to assess and enforce neutral status for individual athletes who have not actively supported the war and are not contracted to military or state security agencies. Those who are given neutral status must compete without national identity of flag, anthem or colours. Russia remains banned from team sports. The IOC said eight Russians and three from Belarus are among 4,600 athletes worldwide who have so far qualified for the Summer Games, which open in July. Russia sent 335 athletes to the Tokyo .

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,

IOA to conduct seminar with Nada for athletes prior to Paris Olympics 2024

"We want to educate the athletes bound for the Olympic Games on the anti-doping rule violations to ensure proper compliance during the games," IOA President PT Usha said

Paris mayor quitting Musk's 'global sewer' platform X ahead of Olympics

The mayor of future Olympic host city Paris says she is quitting X, accusing Elon Musk 's platform previously known as Twitter of spreading disinformation and hatred and of becoming a gigantic global sewer that is toxic for democracy and constructive debate. With its thousands of anonymous accounts and its troll farms, life on Twitter is the exact opposite of democratic life, Mayor Anne Hidalgo said in a long post titled, Why I am leaving Twitter. I refuse to endorse this evil scheme, she wrote. An Associated Press request for comment emailed to X got an automated reply, Busy now, please check back later. Hidalgo's office said posts on Monday in French and English that announced her departure from X would be the Socialist mayor's last and that she will then close her account which has 1.5 million followers at the end of the week. Her office said that Paris City Hall is keeping its own separate account on X. Hidalgo's withdrawal from X follows a fractious period for the mayor. S

French military to send 15,000 soldiers to security ops for Paris Olympics

France's military is planning to contribute 15,000 soldiers to the massive security operation for next year's Paris Olympics, an army general involved in the preparations said Thursday. The bulk of the military force nearly 10,000 troops will be deployed in the Paris region, where most Olympic events will be concentrated, said Gen Christophe Abad, the military governor of Paris who serves as military adviser to the French capital's police chief. Military forces will also be employed for the games as far as 15,000 km (nearly 10,000 miles) away in Tahiti, where navy vessels will safeguard the venue there for Olympic surfing. In Paris, a temporary military camp for 5,000 troops will be set up in a park in the southeast of the capital, putting the force close to the city's Olympic sites, Abad said. The security operation for the July 26 to Aug 11 Olympics, and Paralympic Games that follow, is unprecedented in scale for France. Tens of thousands of police officers and private security

India absent from voting on resolution to build better world through sports

India did not participate in voting on a UN General Assembly resolution on building a peaceful and better world through sport and recognising the role of sports in preventing and countering terrorism and violent extremism as well as promoting human rights. The 193-member UN General Assembly adopted the draft resolution Building a Peaceful and Better World through Sport and the Olympic Ideal' tabled by France on Tuesday. The resolution has been traditionally adopted by consensus but this year, Russia called for a recorded vote on the text for it to be adopted. Of the 193 UN member states, 120 voted in the UNGA on the resolution, which received 118 votes in favour and none against, with Russia and Syria abstaining. India was among the 73 nations that were absent from voting on the resolution. The resolution recognised the contribution of sports in creating an atmosphere of tolerance and understanding among peoples and nations, its role to prevent and counter terrorism and violent ..

No gold medal bouts at next year's Paris Olympics qualifiers for wrestling

The next year's Continental qualifiers offering spots for the Paris Olympics will not have gold or bronze medals bouts and the winners of the two semifinalists will make the cut for the 2024 Games, according to the new format approved by the world governing body UWW. Apart from four Continental Qualifiers, the World Qualifier will also not offer gold medal and the two semifinal winners will earn quotas while the winners of the bronze-medal bouts will compete for the third quota in each of the six weight categories in three styles. The Pan-American Qualifiers in Acapulco, Mexico from February 28 to March 1 will open the qualification opportunities. "All five Paris Olympic Qualifiers next year will have four seeds in each of the weight classes and no gold-medal bouts," UWW said on its website. African & Oceania Qualifiers will be held in Alexandria, Egypt from March 22-24 and the European Qualifiers in Baku, Azerbaijan are scheduled to take place from April 4-7. The Asian Qualifiers

Ready to host 2036 Olympics, no dearth of sporting talent in country: PM

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday said this year's sports budget is three times more than the allocation made nine years ago and asserted India has a vast pool of sporting talent and is prepared to host the 2036 Olympic Games. He said India's recent success in the world of sports is a huge inspiration for every young sportsperson, weeks after the country bagged a record 107 medals at the Asian Games in China. Speaking after inaugurating the 37th National Games at the Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium at Margao, Modi said the Games are taking place in Goa at a time when Indian sports is reaching new heights. We have brought in changes in schemes to provide financial incentives to sportspersons, he said. There is no dearth of sporting talent in India, Modi said, adding the country has produced many sports champions. "The country has produced champions despite deprivation, yet poor performance in the medal tally always rankled people," he said. Modi referred to several key ...

A coming-out party: Olympics, development and a statement to the world

If Ahmedabad is India's preferred candidate, as seems likely, hosting Olympics 2036 should give it a leg up: A bigger airport, a better metro network, more hotels, flyovers and so on, writes T N Ninan

TMS Ep545: Aakash & Byju's, cricket in Olympics, auto stocks, civil union

Can Aakash save Byju's? What does inclusion of cricket in the Olympics mean? How to play the auto theme this festive season? What is a civil union? All answers here

How a heady mix of IPL & Kohli helped cricket secure 2028 LA Olympics berth

T20's fast format and ability to attract a young audience also helped clinch the slot

India's compound archers disappointed after 2028 Olympics snub

The IOC Executive Board rejected the World Archery's proposal saying it would impact the overall budget of the Games since the number of archers qualifying for the event would increase