Usha to run for post of IOA prez

Vinayak Padmadeo

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New Delhi, November 26

Indian athletics legend PT Usha has announced that she will contest the election for the post of the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) president, while Indian Weightlifting Federation president Sahdev Yadav will file his nomination for the treasurer.

Usha, a four-time Asian Games gold medallist, is a sitting Rajya Sabha MP. Usha’s announcement ends the suspense over which among the several BJP leaders — including Assam Chief Minister Hemanta Biswa Sarma (current Badminton Association of India) and Kalyan Chaubey (All-India Football Federation chief) — will announce their candidature for the top post. It is expected that Usha’s candidature will have the support of the Union Government, which nominated her to the Rajya Sabha in July.

Athletics Federation of India president Adille Sumariwalla had also been in the running for the post of the IOA president, but Usha’s candidature has thrown a spanner in the works.

“With the warm support of my fellow athletes and National Federations, I am humbled and honoured to accept and file for the nomination of the president of IOA!” Usha wrote on Twitter today.

Interestingly, Usha was selected by the IOA Athletes’ Commission — headed by London Olympic bronze medallist MC Mary Kom — among eight Sportspersons of Merit who will have the voting rights in the IOA election, to be held on December 10. The seven others are MM Somaya, Yogeshwar Dutt, Suma Shirur, Rohit Rajpal, Aparna Popat, Akhil Kumar and Dola Banerjee. Apart from them, Mary Kom and Athletes’ Commission vice chairman Achanta Sharath Kamal will have the voting rights.

The deadline for filing nominations was 5PM today. Sunday is expected to be a busy day for Returning Officer Umesh Sinha, who has not received any nomination papers over the last two days.

Meanwhile, the career administrators of IOA, a majority of whom will be out of office come December 10, are in a last-minute huddle to salvage the situation.