National Games likely to be held in November in Goa

Panaji: Goa has suggested to the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) that the state will be ready to host the 37th National Games in November later this year.

The 36th edition of the National Games were taken away from Goa and handed to Gujarat which hosted the event at short notice last year. Goa has been allotted the next edition which is expected to be hosted later this year.

A four-member delegation from Goa led by sports minister Govind Gaude met IOA president PT Usha in Delhi on Tuesday. Gagan Narang, vice president, Kalyan Choubey, joint secretary, Bhupinder Singh Bajwa and Amitabh Sharma, executive council members, were also present.

“We are ready to host the National Games in November,” a senior official told TOI. “Goa has told IOA that the National Games can commence anywhere between November 1-10, depending on the Prime Minister’s availability.”

The November dates, according to sources, have been narrowed down since the much-awaited event cannot happen before the Asian Games 2022 which will take place in Hangzhou, China, from September 23 to October 8. The Asian Games were originally due to take place in 2022 before being postponed due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

“International athletes will need a minimum of 15-day rest after the Asian Games, so November will be a good time. It’s the festive season too (Diwali), and schools will have a break, so attendances (at stadiums) will be on the rise,” said another official.

Gaude was accompanied by Rohit Kadam, director, department of sports & youth affairs, Geeta Nagvenkar, executive director, Sports Authority of Goa, and Sandeep Warlikar, SAG official.

Sources said a delegation will soon be visiting Goa to evaluate the readiness and finalise the technical requirements for conducting each sport, possibly early next month.

“There has been some murmurs that officials from the Goa Olympic Association (GOA) were not part of this meeting in Delhi, but this was only a familiarisation trip. Even the sports secretary (Ajit Roy) did not attend, so does that mean he’s not part of the plans? We will have a through meeting with GOA and IOA officials next month. GOA has a big role to play,” said a government official.