<p>The Olympic Council of Asia will be led by India’s seasoned sports administrator Randhir Singh for the next Asian Games in Hangzhou, China, after the International Olympic Committee declined to recognize the OCA’s recent election.</p>
<p>Randhir has been requested by the IOA to continue serving as the OCA’s interim president.<img decoding=”async” class=”alignnone wp-image-103711″ src=”https://www.theindiaprint.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/theindiaprint.com-the-third-day-of-the-box-office-for-rocky-aur-rani-kii-prem-kahaani-saw-a-big-increase-bringing-in-rs-18-5-crore-download-2023-07-31t112519.198.jpg” alt=”” width=”1329″ height=”747″ srcset=”https://www.theindiaprint.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/theindiaprint.com-the-third-day-of-the-box-office-for-rocky-aur-rani-kii-prem-kahaani-saw-a-big-increase-bringing-in-rs-18-5-crore-download-2023-07-31t112519.198.jpg 299w, https://www.theindiaprint.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/theindiaprint.com-the-third-day-of-the-box-office-for-rocky-aur-rani-kii-prem-kahaani-saw-a-big-increase-bringing-in-rs-18-5-crore-download-2023-07-31t112519.198-150×84.jpg 150w” sizes=”(max-width: 1329px) 100vw, 1329px” /></p>
<p>Having banned Kuwait’s Sheikh Ahmad Al-Fahad Al-Sabah for three years over his alleged involvement in the most recent OCA elections in Bangkok, where the latter’s brother Sheikh Talal Fahad Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah was elected president of the top continental sports body by 24 votes to 20, the IOC wrote to Randhir, a former secretary general of the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) and an ex-IOA member.</p>
<p>However, on the advice of its ethics committee, the IOC declined to recognize Sheikh Ahmad’s election to the position of OCA president and started an inquiry into the voting.</p>
<p>Sheikh Ahmad, a former OPEC secretary general, resigned as president of the OCA in 2021 after being found guilty of fraud by a Swiss criminal court. He was also suspended from the IOC at same time.</p>
<p>The IOC wrote in the letter that it would “continue to work with you as OCA’s acting president and with the OCA Executive Board that was in place prior to the Bangkok General Assembly” because the investigation was unlikely to be finished before October 2023 and because it did not recognize Sheikh Talal Al-Sabah’s election.</p>
<p>“We anticipate that you will continue to oversee OCA administration in all areas, including convening any Executive Boards, General Assemblies, and other meetings required for OCA governance.</p>
<p>“We would also appreciate it if you could confirm to whom the IOC should address itself for daily administration business.”</p>
<p>Former shooter Randhir, who is now an honorary member of the IOC, held the position of OCA secretary general from 1991 until 2015.</p>
<p>“Following the outcome of the IOC investigation, we will work with you to implement the next steps of a roadmap to ensure the continued functioning of the OCA in accordance with the fundamental principles of good governance,” the IOC said.</p>
<p>In September 2021, Randhir took over as the Olympic Council of Asia’s interim president after Sheikh Ahmad Al-Fahad Al-Sabah made the decision to appeal the guilty judgement in the Swiss forgery trial.</p>
<p>Randhir, a five-time Olympic shooter who won the gold medal at the Asian Games in 1978, was elevated to the post from his previous one as an honorary life vice president.</p>
<p>The dates for the next Asian Games are September 23 to October 8.</p>
