Two-time Olympic medallist PV Sindhu has been appointed as the chairperson of the Indian Olympic Association’s (IOA) Athletes Commission, while Indian hockey team captain Harmanpreet Singh will take over the duties as vice-chairperson.
Meanwhile, weightlifter Mirabai Chanu and swimmer Sajan Prakash were elected as athlete representatives to the IOA General Body. For the unversed, all four members were elected unopposed.
and Harmanpreet were the only candidates who filed nominations for the respective positions. Under IOC rules, the two posts must be occupied by a male and a female athlete. The appointment means that both members will also become members of the IOA Executive Council, which will be constituted following the national Olympic body’s elections on December 5. All the elected members will occupy the position for four years from 2026 to 2030.
Chanu and Sajan, meanwhile, will be eligible to vote in the elections on December 5.
In a notice issued on Friday, Returning Officer Srivastava confirmed the election of the four athletes.
“The election of the Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson of IOA Executive Council and two Representatives of the Athletes’ Commission to the IOA General Assembly, one male and one female, as scheduled on 7th November 2026, will not serve any purpose as there is only one candidate for each post in each category,” the notice stated.
Candidates for the chairperson and vice-chairperson posts had to be from the six-member Olympic category of the Athletes’ Commission. This group included athletes who have competed in at least one of the last three Olympic Games.
The appointments came after 10 athletes were elected unopposed to the IOA Athletes’ Commission on November 3. PV Sindhu, Harmanpreet Singh, Mirabai Chanu and Sajan Prakash were among them. Former track and field athlete Sudha Singh withdrew from the race, leaving 10 candidates for 10 available positions.
The commission has five seats each for male and female athletes. As the number of candidates matched the available positions, all 10 were declared elected without a vote.
The other members include Indian women’s hockey captain Salima Tete, shooter Swapnil Kusale, fencer Bhavani Devi, shot putter Tajinderpal Singh Toor, former archer Bombayla Devi and kayaker Manjeet Singh.
Winter Olympian Shiva Keshavan and shooter Rajeshwari Kumari, who are members of the Olympic Council of Asia’s Athletes’ Commission, will also be part of the panel as ex-officio members.
Sindhu, Chanu and Bhavani Devi have previously served on the IOA Athletes’ Commission, which was headed by former world champion boxer MC Mary Kom.
The new commission will represent athletes’ interests in India’s Olympic administration. Its formation comes ahead of the IOA elections scheduled for December 5.