Sindhu, Mirabai Chanu Among 12 Cleared for IOA Athletes Commission Election

The nomination papers of Olympic medallists PV Sindhu and Mirabai Chanu, along with those of 10 other sportspersons, have been declared valid for the Indian Olympic Association's (IOA) Athletes Commission election scheduled for November 3.

Returning Officer Sanjay K Srivastava issued the final list of candidates on Thursday after scrutinising their nomination papers. The election will select 10 members, five men and five women, for the 2026–2030 term.

The other candidates include men's hockey captain Harmanpreet Singh, women's hockey captain Salima Tete, shooter Swapnil Kushare, fencer Bhavani Devi, athletes Sudha Singh and Tajinderpal Singh, former archer Bombayla Devi, badminton player Kidambi Srikanth, swimmer Sajan Prakash and kayaker Manjeet Singh.

Sindhu, Chanu and Bhavani Devi are members of the outgoing commission, headed by boxer MC Mary Kom.

The election will be conducted through a 34-member electoral college comprising two representatives each from 17 National Sports Federations (NSFs). The All India Football Federation (AIFF), All India Tennis Association (AITA), Boxing Federation of India (BFI) and Table Tennis Federation of India (TTFI) are not represented.

Under Article 10.3 of the IOA Athletes Commission Rules, only NSFs that have established their own Athletes Commissions can appoint representatives through those bodies.

Of the 10 elected members, one man and one woman will join the IOA Executive Council.

The eligibility rules require six members, three men and three women — to have participated in at least one of the last three Olympic editions. The remaining four — two men and two women, must have won at least one medal at the Asian Games, Commonwealth Ga