"Hope medal tally keeps improving": IOA CEO Raghuram Iyer on India's Asian Games expectations

Iyer Hopeful of Better Show at Asian Games

Indian Olympic Association (IOA) Chief Executive Officer Raghuram Iyer has expressed confidence that India's medal tally at the upcoming Asian Games will improve, as the country continues its preparations for a potential Olympic bid. Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of the IAMGAME Sports Conclave on Saturday, Iyer said a strong Indian contingent would compete in about 38 sports disciplines.

"I cannot give you a medal count number, but everybody hopes that we keep improving. All the NSFs (National Sports Federations) will be participating in about 38 sports. So there is a strong contingent that will be representing India," Iyer said, as quoted by ANI and The Tribune.

"We sincerely hope that the medal count keeps improving and going higher and better than what we've achieved in the past," he added.

Olympic Ambitions and Infrastructure Focus

Iyer highlighted that India is working towards fulfilling Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision of hosting the Olympic Games. He noted that the country is in continuous dialogue with the International Olympic Committee (IOC) regarding its Olympic ambitions and that studying infrastructure models from previous hosts is important.

"We are in the stage of a continuous dialogue with the organising committee and the IOC on this. LA will be hosting its third Olympics. They held it in 1932, 1984, and this will be their third Olympics," Iyer said.

The IOA chief also shared insights from a recent visit to Los Angeles, the host of the 2028 Olympics, where the delegation examined infrastructure. According to The Tribune, Iyer said the delegation visited the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), the site of the future Olympic Village.

"Going and looking at the kind of infrastructure that they have, they are going to be using all their existing infrastructure for the Olympic Games. So we went and saw the UCLA where the village is going to be. Those were very interesting takeaways for us to try and build on," Iyer explained.

Shared Responsibility for Sports Development

Addressing sports development in India, Iyer said it is a shared responsibility, as sports is a state subject. He added that it is not for the IOA to make Olympic infrastructure a Centre of Excellence. He pointed to states such as Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, and Odisha for their growing focus on sports development and infrastructure, as reported by The Tribune, which also noted that IAMGAME 2026 was held at Bharat Mandapam, New Delhi, on August 21-22, introducing a Sports Fest alongside its industry-focused Conclave.