In 1920, India sent its first participant to the Olympic Games, widely regarded the largest and greatest sporting event in the world. In the years that followed, Indian athletes won several more medals and the games have grown in stature and grandeur, becoming as much a reflection of the culture of sport as of sporting excellence. Increasingly, the Olympics are also an avenue for diplomacy and soft power. The 2024 Olympics are a milestone for India, marking over one hundred years of the country’s participation. With India’s pitch to host the 2036 Olympics (with its star sport, cricket, to feature), this raises many questions about whether India is ‘Olympic-ready’: does the country have clear governance mechanisms that operate year-round, and does it support athletes with proper coaches (international and trained locally) and post-retirement career opportunities? Does it have a robust culture of sport? What support – cultural, financial, and educational – can be established to encourage younger generations to consider sport as a sustainable and long-term career? And finally, how will this contribute to nurturing sport as a form of soft diplomacy for India on a global stage?

Asia Society India Centre, in collaboration with JSW and the Consulate General of France in Mumbai, present a conversation that explores these ideas in the lead-up to the Paris Olympics. Hosted at the Museum of Solutions in Mumbai, the evening will begin with a short keynote introduction by Alexandra de Navacelle de Coubertin, the fourth generation descendent of Pierre de Coubertin, who is recognised as the father of the modern Olympic movement. She is the President of the Pierre de Coubertin Family Association and a member of the Olympic Culture and Heritage Committee of the International Olympic Committee. A moderated panel discussion will follow the keynote, featuring Parth Jindal, founder, JSW Sports; Sakshi Malik, Olympic bronze medalist, wrestling; Dipa Karmakar, Olympic gymnast; Priya Mohan, track and field athlete, India; and moderator Sohini Chattopadhyay, National Award-winning writer and journalist, and author, 'The Day I Became a Runner' (Harper Collins, 2023).

SPEAKERS

Alexandra de Navacelle de Coubertin, as the President of l’Association Familiale Pierre de Coubertin, carries forward the esteemed legacy of her ancestor, Pierre de Coubertin, who revitalised the modern Olympic Games over a century ago. With a profound commitment to the principles that the Olympics represent, Alexandra is dedicated to promoting the values of excellence, friendship, and respect through sports and cultural initiatives. Belonging to a lineage that has profoundly influenced the sporting world, Alexandra champions the timeless ideals of Olympism, striving to integrate these values into contemporary life. She believes passionately in the power of sports to unite people, transform lives, and foster global peace and understanding. Her leadership is driven by the vision, audacity, and energy that defined Pierre de Coubertin’s life-long mission. In her role, Alexandra aims to inspire future generations through educational, cultural, and sporting initiatives that celebrate and uphold Olympic values. She actively promotes peace, inclusion, and human solidarity, collaborating with partners and organisations that share these values to maximise their collective impact. Under Alexandra's guidance, the legacy of Pierre de Coubertin continues to thrive. She is committed to fostering mutual understanding, transcending cultural barriers, and building a hopeful future based on the principles of sport and Olympism. Alexandra’s message encourages everyone to be active participants in a contemporary world, engaging with courage and determination in a life of fraternity and solidarity.

Parth Jindal earned his MBA from Harvard Business School in 2016 and his Bachelor in Arts in Economics and Political Science from Brown University in 2012. He is the Managing Director of JSW Cement and JSW Paints, and Director on the Board of JSW Energy. He is the founder of JSW Sports, which owns and manages the football team Bengaluru FC and the pro-Kabaddi League team Haryana Steelers. He is also chairman and co-owner of the Indian Premier League cricket team Delhi Capitals. He is also the founder of Inspire Institute of Sport, a visionary project to elevate India’s Olympic caliber. 

Sakshi Malik was born on September 3, 1992, in the village of Mokhra in the Rohtak district of Haryana. At just 12, she began training under Ishwar Dahiya and five years later, she experienced her first taste of success with a silver medal in the 2009 Asian Junior World Championships in 59kg freestyle, which was followed by a bronze medal at the 2010 World Junior Championships. She became India’s first female wrestler to win an Olympic medal, winning the bronze medal at the 2016 Olympic Games, at Rio de Janeiro. She won the silver medal at the 2014 Glasgow Commonwealth Games, the bronze medal at the 2018 Gold Coast Commonwealth Games, and the gold medal at the 2022 Birmingham Commonwealth Games. She also won a bronze medal at the Commonwealth Championships, 2013 and a silver at the Commonwealth Championships 2017. She won a bronze at the Asian Championships 2015, silver in 2017, and bronze in both, 2018 and 2019. She was awarded the highest sporting honour of India, Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna in 2016, and the Padma Shri in 2017.

Dipa Karmakar is an Indian gymnast. At Rio 2016, Dipa Karmakar became the first woman gymnast to represent the country at an Olympic Games. She started her formal training in gymnastics when she was just six, won the Junior Nationals at age 14. She was a part of India’s gymnastics contingent at the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi. She is one of only five women in the world who can execute the ‘Produnova,’ and won the bronze medal for it, at the 2014 Commonwealth Games. She was also the first female gymnast from India to qualify for the Olympic Games. She has won India’s Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award and the Padma Shri, India’s fourth-highest civilian award.

Priya Mohan was born on March 15, 2003, in the Habbathanahalli village of Tumakuru district in Karnataka, and has been fascinated with athletics from a young age. Priya currently trains at the Inspire Institute of Sport, under Coach Anier Garcia, a 2000 Olympic hurdles champion. In 2019, she won a silver medal in the mixed relay at the Asian Youth Athletics Championships in Hong Kong, a silver medal at the South Asian Games in the 400 meters, and a bronze medal in the 4*400 Women' s Relay in Nepal, Kathmandu. In 2021, she won the 400 m race in the Senior National Championships in 2021, with a time of 53.29 seconds; and the bronze medal in the mixed 4×400m relay at the U-20 World Athletics Championships  at Nairobi, Kenya. In 2022, she won the silver medal in the mixed 4×400m relay at the U-20 World Athletics Championships 2022 at Cali, Colombia.

Sohini Chattopadhyay is a writer, journalist, and National Award-winning film critic. Her book 'The Day I Became a Runner' (HarperCollins India, 2023) attempts an alternate history of the republic through the lives of nine women athletes. Her writing has been commissioned by The New York Times, Guardian, Lancet Psychiatry, South China Morning Post, Hindu, Mint, Sueddeutsche Zeitung, and the leading publications of the world. Her work has been translated into German, Bengali, Tamil and Malayalam. She is a recipient of the New India Foundation fellowship the Ramnath Goenka journalism prize, the Human Rights Press Awards citation among others. Her work is archived on her website https://sohinichattopadhyay.com/.

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