Glasgow [Scotland], July 30 : As the spotlight shines on the ongoing Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, global sports leadership has turned its gaze firmly toward India's ambitious multi-year sporting roadmap, highlighted by Ahmedabad's selection to host the centenary 2030 Commonwealth Games.
Speaking about India's growing stature as an international sports hub, Commonwealth Sport CEO Katie Sadleir lauded the country's long-term major event strategy and recalled her interactions with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, highlighting his deep personal commitment to leveraging sports for national health and development.
Reflecting on shared platforms with the Indian leadership, Sadleir noted the distinct national emphasis placed on physical well-being and infrastructural scaling:
"I had the fortune of speaking at an international conference with him [PM Modi], and he talked about his vision for the future in terms of the health of the nation and using sport to significantly uplift the many people that live in India," said Sadleir.
Sadleir also acknowledged India's broader global sporting ambitions, including its proactive bidding for the 2036 Olympic Games and praised the existing domestic sporting infrastructure as "world-class," noting that it will offer an exceptional stage for global athletes and fans alike.
"I think we all know that they are looking to bring the Olympics to India at some stage in the future. They have several other major events in the line-up, both before our event and in their bidding process for 2030. The facilities that already exist there are world-class. So it is going to be incredibly special for athletes, fans, and the world to see the transformation that is going on in India in terms of using sport to reposition India as a global sporting power," she signed off.
To coordinate logistics and review infrastructure preparations for the upcoming 2030 centenary event, India's contingent at the Glasgow CWG features a special administrative delegation headed by Gujarat Deputy Chief Minister Harsh Sanghvi.
This follows a series of high-level engagements earlier in the year, when a delegation led by Commonwealth Sport President Dr Donald Rukare visited Gujarat to inspect proposed competition venues and meet with Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel in Gandhinagar.
The International Olympic Association (IOA) officially confirmed the award of the 2030 centenary Games to Ahmedabad last November, marking a historic milestone exactly 100 years since the inaugural Games were held in Hamilton, Canada, in 1930.
With subsequent major event lineups and infrastructure scaling already underway, sports authorities believe the milestone event will heavily reinforce India's transition into a dominant global sporting powerhouse.
The 2030 Commonwealth Games, scheduled to be held in Ahmedabad, are expected to play a significant role in strengthening India's sporting infrastructure and bolster the country's ambitions of hosting the 2036 Olympic Games.
The first Commonwealth Games, in 1930 in Hamilton, featured a small number of countries competing, while the most recent Games, in Birmingham, England, in 2022, were dominated by Australia at the top of the medal table, followed by England, Canada, India, and New Zealand.