Mumbai: Worldwide Olympic Committee (IOC) vice-president Juan Antonio Samaranch smiles whereas speaking about being concerned with the apex sports activities physique for over 20 years and “uncovered to this world as a toddler”. So, for him working for its presidency in subsequent week’s election is a “privilege”.
On this interview with HT, the Spaniard, son of the late Juan Antonio Samaranch, IOC president from 1980 to 2001, discusses India’s common enchantment within the Olympic motion, its 2036 Video games bid and local weather change probably forcing the Video games to shift timeframes.
Excerpts:
Staging an Olympics is an costly train. We’ve seen international locations pull out of internet hosting the Commonwealth Video games due to that. How can it’s addressed?
This concern grew to become apparent a decade in the past, that we have been seeing an absence of curiosity or an absence of chance by many territories and cities to organise the Video games. We even discovered ourselves with solely two candidates for the 2024 Video games, however each very robust. The staff again then was brave sufficient to double award the Video games to Paris (2024) and LA (2028). The state of affairs immediately is totally different. Many territories, not least India, are pushing to organise the Video games for 2036 or 2040. With the Agenda 2020 and 2020+5, which made it inexpensive and extra cheap to organise the Video games, we’re going into a brand new world, one which makes extra monetary sense now.
Your views on India bidding for the 2036 Olympics.
We declare to be a common organisation. There isn’t a universality these days with out India, and it stepping up and taking its rightful place within the Olympic motion. This implies Olympic groups, medals, organising Olympic occasions and finally the Video games. The ultimate choice of the Olympics will probably be taken by the IOC governance physique. However actually, candidacy from India means excellent information for the world. It means that you’re coming, and we’re blissful to provide a serving to hand so you may take your rightful place within the Olympic motion.
Traditionally India hasn’t performed a robust position within the Olympic motion, nor does it win the variety of medals different prime nations do. What does India provide in rising the motion?
India is a mosaic of tradition and traditions… It’s not solely about profitable medals, which, in fact, is critical. India should combat and step up the sport in coaching and getting your groups to world-class degree. However it’s additionally about India representing a big a part of the society and world youth. We want you.
India appears to be like to construct many new venues from scratch, not like Paris the place most have been current or short-term. Is that excellent from the IOC goal of conservation?
Hear, the Olympic Video games will not be about constructing venues. What we actually don’t need is that any candidate metropolis is predicated on constructing enormous infrastructure initiatives which might be already not embedded within the long-term improvement plans of the group. We go there for 16 days, for Christ’s sake! That infrastructure needs to be there for 100 years. We will go anyplace, and we’ll adapt. However we even have good examples of improvement initiatives — in London 2012, Barcelona 1992 and plenty of others — the place some huge cash was invested, and people initiatives acquired the power and focus because of the Olympics. That’s superb with us. I don’t have something towards constructing new stadiums. However let’s make it possible for that stadium goes to serve society and the local people for many years. If a venture delivered to us has vital doubts of the funding legacy being actual, we might not like that venture. It’s clear.
Amongst IOC’s crucial criterion is for the NOC to have its home so as. India has some points there at current.
I’ve been travelling to your nation steadily and have met a variety of officers. I’m certain this stuff will get resolved. As a result of it’s needed. It needs to be performed.
The specter of local weather change is staring on the Olympics. Do you see a situation the place the interval of staging the Summer season Video games might must be moved?
I’ve been clear in my manifesto that we can not exclude 1.5 billion (affected) individuals of the world from celebrating the Video games due to local weather change. Local weather is not going to adapt to the present world sports activities calendar, so we might want to adapt the it to the local weather. We should be certain no territory performs at an obstacle within the race to organise the Olympics (on account of local weather). So sure, if needed, we might want to change the dates of the Olympics.
You’ve been a part of the IOC for lengthy, at the moment vice-president. What are the largest challenges for the motion within the present instances?
The very first thing is to proceed to maintain the Video games robust and related within the subsequent editions. Then, you need to make it possible for on this difficult world stuffed with rigidity and new realities that our declare to universality continues to be our cause to exist. If immediately it’s harder to work on these rules, it means it’s extra necessary than ever earlier than that we proceed to work laborious to uphold these values. And thirdly, all this can require elevated financing.
