LAHORE: Pakistan will host the much-delayed 14th South Asian Games in 2026, the South Asian National Olympic Committee announced in a meeting held here on Tuesday.

The games — which were supposed to be held in 2021 but was postponed due to Covid-19 — will be staged in Lahore, Faisalabad and Islamabad from Jan 23 to 31.

The meeting — chaired by South Asian Olympic Committee Pakistan Olympic Association president Arif Saeed — was attended by the representatives of Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bhutan and the Maldives while an Indian spokesperson joined the meeting online.

There were problems in holding the multi-nation gala in 2021 as the POA and the government of Pakistan were not on the same page regarding different matters.

The doubts still linger over the games, as the Indian Olympic Association may not get an No-Objection Certifificate (NOC) from its government to send the contingent to Pakistan as per the stubborn policy adopted by the Indian government.

The meeting reinforced the collective commitment of the South Asian National Olympic Committees to foster regional sports development and strengthen cooperation through sports.

The achievement of javelin stars Pakistan’s Arshad Nadeem and Neeraj Chopra of India were also highlighted during the meeting.

The athletes brought South Asia into the global spotlight at Paris 2024 by winning medals in javelin throw — an achievement that not only inspired youth of the subcontinent but also underscored the power of sports in promoting peace, unity and shared aspirations across borders.

Moreover, it was also announced that the events for each sport will also be decided before March 31 and the technical handbooks will be prepared and released subject to approval of the Asian Federations concerned.

It was also decided to form the South Asian Olympic Committee Constitution Review Committee to align its constitution with the Olympic Council of Asia.

Rowing, proposed as a second optional sport by the host National Olympic Committee, will be included once it receives endorsement from at least four National Olympic Committees as an additional sport to the already-approved programme.

As many as 27 different disciplines were approved in the meeting for the Games. These include:

Swimming (men and women), archery (men and women), athletics (men and women), badminton (men and women), billiards and snooker (Men), boxing (men and women), fencing (men and women), golf (men and women), judo (men and women), karate (men and women), shooting (men and women), squash (men and women), table tennis (men and women), taekwondo (men and women), tennis (men and women), triathlon (men and women), weightlifting (men and women), wrestling (men and women), wushu (men and women), basketball 3x3 and 5x5 (men and women), cricket (men and women), football (men and women), handball (men and women) and beach handball (Men), hockey (Men), mat kabaddi (men and women), rugby (Men), volleyball (men and women) and beach volleyball (Men) and Rowing.

Published in Dawn, February 26th, 2025