New Delhi | India will be represented by 125 to 130 athletes covering eight able-bodied and four para sports at the scaled-down Glasgow Commonwealth Games in July-August, Indian Olympic Association (IOA) CEO Raghuram Iyer said on Friday while asserting that the body would steer clear of any selection disputes.
The 2026 CWG -- scheduled from July 23 to August 2 -- will feature just 10 able-bodied and six para sports to ensure a cost-effective event. Glasgow stepped in as the host city after the Australian state of Victoria pulled out due to escalating costs.
"We will have a total of 125-130 participants, athletes. One third of the number of athletes will be the support staff," IOA CEO Raghuram Iyer told PTI.
"We will compete in eight able-bodied and four para sports," he said on the sidelines of the second edition of the IOA Athletes Forum here.
The sports programme for the Glasgow CWG comprises athletics and para athletics, swimming and para swimming, 3x3 basketball and wheelchair 3x3 basketball, bowls and para bowls, boxing, track cycling and para track cycling, gymnastics, judo, netball, and weightlifting and para powerlifting.
The 2022 CWG in Birmingham had featured 19 able-bodied and eight para sports, and India had sent 208 athletes, winning 61 medals (22 gold, 16 silver, 23 bronze) to finish fourth in the final standings.
The IOA is expected to announce the full contingent after June 23 which is the deadline for sending the list of participants to the Glasgow Games organisers.
"The teams have been selected. All the NSFs have sent us the names. The uniforms and the ceremonial dress (for the contingent members) are being planned. All the logistics are being planned," Iyer said.
"We have had three meetings with various NSFs about their plans, about the pre-Commonwealth Games training programmes." As the host country of the 2030 CWG, India will receive the flag of the Commonwealth Sport during the closing ceremony in Glasgow on August 2. Ahmedabad will host the centenary edition of the CWG in 2030.
"There will be something special planned and that is actually the prerogative of the host city, Ahmedabad. Whether it is art, culture or any other kind of entertainment that we want to put forth is going to be decided. But there is work happening and you will see a very interesting show, interesting vignette that will be put together," said Iyer.
He said IOA is also simultaneously planning for the Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan in September-October, which will be of much bigger scale than the CWG. India will also be sending a much bigger contingent of more than 700 to the Asian Games.
"There are 44 sports in the Asian Games and happening immediately post the CWG. There is a lot of work happening on that front as well. We are hoping for a strong show in the Asian Games.
IOA not to interfere in selection matters
Iyer also indicated that the IOA is unlikely to interfere in the selection matters for CWG and Asian Games, a regular problem that arises before multi-sport events.
The latest controversy is the axing of star table tennis player Manika Batra from the Asian Games squad for not meeting selection criteria set by Table Tennis Federation of India (TTFI) related to national-level competitive appearances.
"I think all of those are the NSF selection policy of the teams. We don't interfere in the selection. We just need to ensure that whatever the policies that were laid down are followed," he said.
"I think that is best left for the Table Tennis Federation of India to decide," he said when asked about Manika's omission.
On Thursday, Manika had urged Sports Minister and the IOA top brass to look into the matter, after the TTFI dropped her from the Asian Games squad.
IOA in touch with IOC on 2036 Olympics bid
Regarding India's bid to host the 2036 Olympics in Ahmedabad, Iyer said the IOA has been in constant touch with the International Olympic Committee (IOC).
The IOC's Executive Board recently proposed a transitional stage of "Strategic Dialogue" in between the Continuous and Targeted Dialogue to shortlist interested parties with developed projects for more in-depth evaluation.
The changes to the host selection procedure will be put to vote during the IOC Session on June 24 and 25 in Lausanne, Switzerland.
"I think the IOC will come out with some more details. The process will be followed but we are in constant touch with them. They are in touch with us. We are still in the continuous dialogue phase." The reforms are designed to enable potential hosts to develop their projects in a more cost-efficient way.