Official Newsletter of the Olympic Council of Asia Edition 52 - March 2021 WIN-WIN DOHA, RIYADH OCA GENERAL ASSEMBLY NAMES TWO ASIAN GAMES HOST CITIES Inside the OCA | OCA Games Update | NOC News | Women In Sport Contents Inside Sporting Asia Edition 52 – March 2021 3 President’s Message 9 4 – 9 Six pages of NOC News in Pictures 10 – 16 OCA Games Update 10 – 15 19th Asian Games Hangzhou 2022 16 Asian Youth Games Shantou 2021 12 17 – 24 39th OCA General Assembly Muscat 2020 17 OCA President’s welcome message 18 – 19 It’s a win-win situation 20 – 21 Muscat Photo Gallery 23 22 OCA Order of Merit/AYG Tashkent 2025 23 IOC President praises OCA 24 General Assembly Notebook 25 – 27 Inside the OCA 28 28 – 31 Women in Sport 32 – 33 Road to Tokyo 34 – 35 News in Brief 36 – 37 Obituary 38 – 39 OCA Sports Diary 32 40 Hangzhou 2022 OCA Sponsors’ Club * Page 02 President’s Message OCA WILL EMERGE STRONGER FROM PANDEMIC PROBLEMS Sporting Asia is the official newsletter of the Olympic Council of Asia, published quarterly. Executive Editor / Director General Husain Al-Musallam [email protected] Director, Int’l & NOC Relations Vinod Tiwari [email protected] Director, Asian Games Department Haider A. Farman [email protected] Editor IT Director t was very disappointing to postpone two This will make it a busy year for our NOCs, Amer Elalami I Jeremy Walker [email protected]@ocasia.org of our OCA games in quick succession. with the Beijing Winter Olympics in Febru- ary, AIMAG 6 in March and our 19th Asian Executive Secretary The 6th Asian Beach Games in Sanya, China Games in Hangzhou, China in September. Nayaf Sraj was originally scheduled for November [email protected] 2020 but had to be put back to April 2021. The OCA will do everything in its power to support our NOCs in the coming months, Media Manager Unfortunately, with the pandemic situation with Tokyo 2020 starting in July and also Jeans Zhou Jian [email protected] not improving and international travel so our 3rd Asian Youth Games in Shantou, problematic, we had no option but to call China in November. Olympic Council of Asia them off for a second time. PO Box 6706, Hawalli On a brighter note, everyone was delighted Zip Code 32042 Although we have not fixed new dates yet, with the outcome of our General Assembly Kuwait we are working closely with the local organ- in Muscat last December. Telephone: +965 22274277 - 88 ising committee and the Chinese Olympic Fax: +965 22274280 - 90 Email: [email protected] Committee to find a time slot for our very We were able to sign up two host cities for Website: www.ocasia.org popular beach games event. our Asian Games - Doha 2030 and Riyadh 2034 – as well as Tashkent for our 4th Asian I would like to thank the National Olympic Youth Games in 2025. Committees for your understanding, patience and cooperation over this matter – These additions to our calendar really and I assure you it will be well worth the highlight the strength of the Olympic move- wait, as Sanya is truly a special city and ment in Asia and reflect the passion and exotic beach location. enthusiasm of all stakeholders, most notably Front Cover: our NOCs and athletes. We also had to postpone our 6th Asian The OCA President Indoor and Martial Arts Games, set for Bang- This is why I am confident that the OCA will congratulates Doha 2030 kok and Chonburi province in May 2021. emerge stronger and even more united and Riyadh 2034. following the pandemic problems still facing Thanks to the quick work of the organising us today. See Pages 17-24 for the committee and Thailand NOC, we were General Assembly special able to establish new dates for the AIMAG – coverage. March 10-20, 2022. Sheikh Ahmad Al Fahad Al Sabah President, Olympic Council of Asia Page 03 NOC News in Pictures YEMEN Olympic Committee’s strategic plan for domestic and overseas events in 2021 included an evaluation work- shop for 11 sports involving 330 prom- ising young players. The sports included judo, wushu, wrestling, swimming, taekwondo and table tennis. (Photo: Yemen Olympic Committee @yemnoc) CHINESE Taipei Olympic Committee, under its President Hong-Dow Lin, held the 2020 year-end reception on December 10 and celebrated the achievements of a difficult year. These included the 10th anniversary of the International Sports Affairs Training Course which featured 125 participants from 19 NOCs. More than 1,400 trainees have attended the course since 2011. (Photo: CTOC) AFGHANISTAN NOC President Dr. Hafizullah Wali Rahimi led a sports delegation on a special visit to south- western Nimroz Province where they met athletes, the head of the provincial council, lawyers and officials. Photo: Afghanistan National Olympic Committee @OlympicOfficial.af NEPAL Olympic Committee launched the Nepali Sports Digital Archive Project 2020-2021 on December 20 in coop- eration with Nepal Olympic Museum. The project is supported by Olympic Solidarity and will digitalise the history of sport in Nepal for future generations. (https://nocnepal.org.np) Page 04 NOC News in Pictures QATAR Olympic Committee’s First Vice President, HE CAMBODIA NOC Secretary General Vath Chamroeun Sheikh Saud bin Ali Al-Thani, and Indonesia NOC received his COVID-19 vaccination in the presence of President Raja Sapta Oktohari signed a Memorandum of athletes, coaches, sports officials and volunteers, as Understanding on February 10 to boost sports designated by the Prime Minister. This was another step in cooperation and exchange. QOC Secretary General HE the process towards Cambodia’s safe hosting of the 32nd Jassim bin Rashid Al-Buenain and Indonesian Olympic Southeast Asian (SEA) Games in 2023. Committee Secretary General Ferry J Kono also attended. JORDAN Olympic Committee has renewed its partnership MALDIVES Olympic Committee Secretary General Ahmed agreement with the Crown Prince Foundation for a fifth Marzooq and Treasurer Hussain Rasheed met with the year to continue overseeing its pioneering Qusai Initiative Minister of Education, Dr. Aishath Ali, Minister of State for related to the training of sports therapists to deal with Education Fathimath Naseer and the Deputy Minister of medical emergencies and injuries. The signing ceremony Education, Mohamed Ihsan, to discuss the MOC’s athlete was attended by Nasser Majali, JOC Secretary General, scholarship initiative. and Dr. Tamam Manko, CEO of Crown Prince Foundation. (www.joc.jo) (Photo: Maldives Olympic Committee@OlympicMDV) Page 05 NOC News in Pictures MONGOLIAN NOC President Naidan Tuvshinbayar and Secre- tary General Enkhat Badar-Uugan welcomed the women’s 3x3 basketball team to Olympic House to celebrate their historic qualification for Tokyo 2020. The two NOC office bearers presented New Year gifts to all 14 athletes who have qualified for Tokyo 2020 in archery, athletics, boxing, shooting, wrestling and 3x3 basketball. (Photo: Mongolian NOC) SINGAPORE National Olympic Council Secretary General Chris Chan (centre) presents the 2019 IOC Trophy for Sport and Sustain- able Architecture to Suhaimi Rafdi, Senior Director of Our Tampines Hub. IOC Vice Presi- dent Ng Ser Miang also attended the ceremony and said: “We are very impressed with the design and thought process behind Our Tampines Hub which centered on championing eco-sustainability, optimising resources and minimis- ing waste.” (Photo: SNOC) TAJIKISTAN NOC will fund 15 athletes through Olympic Solidar- ity in their bid to qualify for Tokyo 2020, the 19th General Assembly in Dushanbe confirmed on December 29. The meeting was held under the chairmanship of Vice Presidents Shamsullo Sohibov and Abdullo- zoda Ahtam. Two boxers from Tajikistan have already qualified for the Olympics. (http://www.olympic.tj) Page 06 NOC News in Pictures THE Sports and Olympic Committee of Macau, China held a ceremony to inaugu- rate the new Executive Board for the term 2020-2024 at Macau Tower on January 26. The ceremony also welcomed the new Honorary President, former Chief Executive of the Macau SAR Government Fernando Chui Sai On (centre). In his speech, Olympic Committee President Charles Lo thanked Mr. Chui for all the government’s support of the sports movement in Macau during his term of office from 2009 to 2019. SRI Lanka NOC has launched the Next Olympic Hope LEE Kee-heung was re-elected President of the Korean initiative to support emerging athletes in collaboration Sport & Olympic Committee for a new four-year term on with Crysbro, a long-term partner of the NOC and Sri January 18. The IOC Member gained 915 of the 1,974 Lanka's premier poultry producer. Photo: National Olym- votes cast to beat three other candidates in a four-way pic Committee of Sri Lanka @OlympicLK race. (Photo: KSOC) PALESTINE Olympic Committee honoured the national Muay Thai team with an official reception at the NOC HQ to mark the performance of their athletes in an interna- tional online competition. Palestine won 11 medals – eight gold and three bronze – in three styles. Photo: Palestine Olympic Committee @PalOlympic Page 07 NOC News in Pictures INDIAN Olympic Association President Dr Narinder Dhruv Batra met with Mr Ashish Shellar (right), former Sports IN his review of the Olympic year in Saudi Arabia, the Minister of the Government of Maharashtra, in Delhi on President of the Saudi Arabian Olympic Committee, HRH January 21. They discussed the state of sport and sporting Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki Al-Faisal, chose the hosting of activity in India and the sports infrastructure in Maharash- the G20 National Olympic Committees Conference on tra. (Photo: @narinderdhruvbatra.org) November 17 as one of the highlights of 2020. VIETNAM has announced that the sao la - a rare, forest- dwelling ox - has been chosen as the mascot for the 31st Southeast Asian (SEA) Games in Hanoi and neighbouring cities and provinces this November 21-December 2.