Randhir Singh: 1st Indian elected as Olympic Council of Asia President

Former shooter and able administrator Raja Randhir Singh became the first Indian to be elected President of the Olympic Council of Asia. He and other office bearers of the Olympic Committee of Asia were elected at the 44th General Assembly of the Olympic Council of Asia, held in New Delhi on 8 September 2024. 

All 45 Olympic Council Committee members attended the General Assembly meeting in New Delhi.

The Olympic Council of Asia, recognised by the International Olympic Committee, is the sports governing body in Asia.

Raja Randhir Singh elected unanimously 

77-year-old Raja Randhir Singh has been the acting President of the Olympic Council of Asia since 2021, when the incumbent President, Sheikh Ahmad Al-Fahad Al-Sabah of Kuwait, was banned from sports administration for 15 years for breach of ethics.

At the New Delhi meeting, Raja Randhir Singh was unanimously elected President of the Olympic Council of Asia.

Term of Raja Randhir Singh as President 

Raja Randhir Singh has been elected President of the Olympic Council of Asia for a four-year term from 2024 to 2028.

About Raja Randhir Singh 

Raja Randhir Singh comes from a family of sportspersons and sports administrators. His father, Raja Bhalindra Singh, played first-class cricket and was a member of the International Olympic Committee between 1947 - 1992.

As a sportsman, he pursued a career in shooting. Between 1968 and 1984, he represented India in five Summer Olympics.

In the four Asian Games he competed in, he won a gold medal in the 1978 Bangkok Asian Games, a bronze in the 1982 Delhi Asian Games, and a silver medal in the team event at the 1986 Seoul Asian Games.

As a sports administrator, he has served in various roles across several sporting bodies, such as the Indian Olympic Association, Olympic Council of Asia, Sports Authority of India, and Afro-Asian Games Council etc.

Awards 

• Raja Randhir Singh was conferred the prestigious Arjuna Award in 1979  by the government of India.
• Raja Randhir Singh was conferred with the Olympic Council of Asia Award of Merit in 2005,
• ANOC (Association of National Olympic Committee) Merit Award in 2006 
• International Olympic Committee’s Olympic Order, Silver in 2014.

About the Olympic Council of Asia

The Olympic Council of Asia was established as the Asian Games Federation in 1949 in New Delhi.

In 1981, its name was changed to the Olympic Council of Asia, and its headquarters moved from New Delhi to Kuwait.

The Olympic Council of Asia is a non-governmental body that governs sports in Asia.

Member: 45 Asian National Olympic Committee 

Headquarters: Kuwait

President: Raja Randhir Singh