BEIJING — Mumbai will host the 140th International Olympic Committee (IOC) Session in May-June 2023 as India ramps up its sports initiatives with a possible Olympic bid in the future.
By a vote of 75-1, IOC members voted to gather next year in Mumbai, which was the only candidate. The election was held on the second day of the 139th Session on the sidelines of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Games.
Mumbai is known as “The City of Dreams.”
The selection of the 2030 Winter Olympics host city and the sports program for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games are expected to be on the agenda.
India last hosted an IOC Session 40 years ago, with New Delhi doing the honors for the 86th Session in 1983. India hosted the Commonwealth Games in 2010.
IOC member Nita Ambani; Narinder Batra, president of the Indian Olympic Association; sports minister Anura Singh Thacker and India’s first individual Olympic champion Abhinav Bindra — who won his shooting gold medal in Beijing in 2008 — made the presentation to the IOC, which was highlighted by a 15-minute film.
“Yes, it is our aspiration to host the Olympic Games in the future,” Ambani said, noting that the mission was to “inspire every young Indian.”
To coincide with the Session, which will be held at the Jio World Centre, India will launch a series of sport development programs across deprived areas. IOC members were told the site of the meetings is in one of the most secure parts of the city.
The Session will coincide with the 75th anniversary of Indian independence.
“We have chosen India because it is the second most populous nation in the world, with a very young population, and a huge potential for Olympic sport,” IOC President Thomas Bach said in a statement.
Amani said the Session would be the beginning of a new chapter of sporting excellence for India.
“Thank you for your vote of confidence,” she said, adding that “1.3 billon Indians thank you all for your faith in us and I look forward to welcoming all of you to our great nation.”
India has 680 million people under the age of 25, and has one of the fastest-growing economies.
“I can assure you,” Batra added, “that India will not let you down.”
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