Legendary PT Usha appointed the first woman IOA president

New Delhi: The legendary PT Usha was elected as the first woman president of the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) on Saturday, ushering in a new era in the country’s sports administration.

Usha, 58, was declared unopposed for the top position in the polls after winning multiple Asian Games gold medals and finishing fourth in the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics 400m hurdles final.

The elections were overseen by retired Supreme Court judge L Nageswara Rao, who was appointed by the Supreme Court.

The election of Usha to the top job brought an end to the IOA’s long-running crisis, which had been threatened with suspension by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) if elections were not held this month.

The elections were originally scheduled for December 2021.

Usha’s appointment to the top job was a foregone conclusion late last month, when she emerged as the sole candidate.

Nobody wanted to take on Usha, who was appointed to the Rajya Sabha by the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party in July.

Ajay Patel of the National Rifle Association of India (NRAI) was elected as senior vice-president without opposition. As vice presidents, Olympic medalist shooter Gagan Narang and Rowing Federation of India president Rajlaxmi Singh Deo were elected unopposed.

Sahdev Yadav, president of the Indian Weightlifting Federation (IWF), has been elected treasurer. Former goalkeeper and All India Football Federation (AIFF) president Kalyan Chaubey was elected unopposed as joint secretary (male).

After a three-way battle, Alaknanda Ashok of the Badminton Association of India (BAI) was elected as joint secretary (female). Suman Kaushik and Shalini Thakur Chawla were also in the running.

Usha, dubbed the ‘Payyoli Express,’ is seen as a candidate for the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party, which nominated her for a Rajya Sabha seat in July.

She was also the first Olympian and first international medallist to lead the IOA in its 95-year history, adding another feather to her cap after dominating Indian and Asian athletics for two decades before retiring with a slew of international medals in 2000.

Usha is the first sportsperson to represent the country while also serving as IOA president since Maharaja Yadavindra Singh in 1934. Singh was the third president of the IOA, serving from 1938 to 1960.

Wrestler Yogeshwar Dutt and archer Dola Banerjee are members of the executive council as male and female representatives of the eight Sportspersons of Outstanding Merit (SOM).

Bhupender Singh Bajwa, Amitabh Sharma, Harpal Singh, and Rohit Rajpal have also been elected to the executive council, which differs significantly from previous ones.

At least five of the 14 executive council members (including IOC member in India Nita Ambani) are former athletes, a first in IOA history.

As president and vice president of the Athletes Commission, legendary boxer MC Mary Kom and table tennis great Achanta Sharath Kamal are also members of the executive council.