India prepares to host Centenary Commonwealth Games in 2030: PT Usha

IOA President PT Usha met her Commonwealth Sport counterpart to discuss India hosting the 2030 Games. On the sidelines, at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games 2026, India secured medals in shooting and soft tennis, with progress in rowing and table tennis.

PT Usha Discusses Commonwealth Games 2030 Bid

Indian Olympic Association (IOA) President PT Usha met Commonwealth Sport President Donald Rukare on the sidelines of the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games 2026 and discussed the future of the Commonwealth Sport movement. Usha shared details of the meeting on social media platform X, saying the interaction brought back memories of India’s campaign at the Glasgow Commonwealth Games.

"It was wonderful to reconnect with our dear friend and colleague, Dr Donald Rukare, President of Commonwealth Sport, on the sidelines of the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games 2026, bringing back fond memories of our historic and successful campaign at the Glasgow Commonwealth Games," PT Usha wrote on X. The IOA President further said that discussions focused on India’s preparations to host the Centenary Commonwealth Games in 2030 and the future roadmap for the sporting movement. "With India proudly preparing to host the Centenary Commonwealth Games in 2030, we had a warm and productive discussion on the future of Commonwealth Sport and the exciting journey ahead. An exciting new chapter for India and the Commonwealth Sport Movement," she added. India is set to host the Centenary edition of the Commonwealth Games in 2030, marking 100 years since the first edition of the multi-sport event was held in 1930.

Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games 2026: India's Performance

Meanwhile, India secured a medal in shooting and assured another in soft tennis, while athletes across rowing, canoe sprint and table tennis produced notable performances on an action-packed day at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games 2026.

Shooting and Soft Tennis Highlights

The Indian women's skeet team of Raiza Dhillon, Parinaaz Dhaliwal and Maheshwari Chauhan won the bronze medal after finishing third in the team event with a combined score of 331. China won gold with 346 points, while Kazakhstan claimed silver.

In soft tennis, Jay Meena assured India of its first-ever Asian Games medal in the sport after defeating Philippines' Sherwin Nuguit in a thrilling men's singles quarter-final. Meena registered a 4-3 victory to enter the semi-finals, with all semi-finalists guaranteed a medal.

Olympic medallist Manu Bhaker finished fifth in the women's 10m air pistol individual final after reaching the medal round. Suruchi Inder Singh and Esha Singh missed out on qualification for the final.

Progress in Rowing and Canoe Sprint

India also made progress in rowing events. Balraj Panwar qualified for the men's single sculls final after finishing third in his heat, while Satnam Singh and Salman Khan advanced to the men's double sculls final after finishing second in their heat.

The men's kayak four 500m team comprising Harshwardhan Shaktawat, Varinder Singh, L Naocha Singh Oinam and Arun Singh also qualified for the canoe sprint final after finishing third in Heat 1. Megha Pradeep progressed to the women's canoe single 200m semi-final, while Parvathy Geetha and Phairembam Soniya Devi qualified for the women's kayak double 500m semi-final.

In rowing, Gurbani Kaur, Aleena Anto, Tendenthoi Haobijam and Poonam finished sixth overall in the women's four heats and secured qualification for Final A. Jaswinder Singh and Nitin Kumar finished fourth in the men's pair heats and will compete in Final B.

Swimming, Table Tennis and Sepaktakraw Results

In swimming, Benedicton Beniston finished 13th overall in the men's 100m butterfly heats, while Sajan Prakash did not start the event. Vedaant Madhavan and Aneesh Sunil failed to advance from the men's 200m freestyle heats after finishing 19th and 17th, respectively.

Indian paddlers also registered wins in mixed doubles. Harmeet Desai and Yashaswini Ghorpade defeated Maldives' Mohamed Ismail and Fathimath Ali, while Manush Shah and Diya Chitale overcame Sri Lanka's Chanul Kulappuwawadu and Bimandee Swarna.

In sepaktakraw, India defeated the Philippines 2-1 in the men's team regu Group B match but missed out on qualification for the next stage. (ANI)

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