India plan a nationwide AI-driven talent hunt for children aged 5 to 15 to build a strong contingent for the Olympics 2036
The initiative targets high-medal sports like aquatics, cycling, and rowing
Led by Sports Minister Mansukh Mandaviya, India is gearing up to host 11 international competitions in the next six months
India is gearing up for a potential bid to host the Olympic Games 2036, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi announcing plans for a nationwide talent search aimed at discovering and nurturing young athletes aged 5 to 15 to build a competitive national contingent for the global event.
Speaking from the ramparts of the Red Fort during his 80th Independence Day address, Prime Minister Narendra Modi praised the government's flagship Target Olympic Podium Scheme (TOPS)—launched in 2014—highlighting its tremendous success in providing vital support and resources to athletes.
"India is making space for itself in the world of sports. We hear our national anthem frequently and see our tri-colour going up very often. TOPS has achieved great success. Whether it is Khelo India Games, University Games, Beach Games, Winter Games, or sports training, sports medicine, sports nutrition, India is moving ahead at great pace," he said.
"India's performance is improving, and we are strong contenders to become an Olympic host in 2036. We are hosting the CWG in 2030. There are about 40 disciplines in Olympics, with nearly 350 events. It is sad that we don't compete in at least two third of these events because we are not even able to qualify.
"We have decided that in 2036, we should have participation in at least three fourth events. We are launching a nationwide talent hunt for children aged 5 to 15 to identify prospects in every corner of the country. They will get special training to become world class athletes," he added.
The fate of India's 2036 bid is expected to be known only in 2029.
As reported by PTI earlier in January, foundational plans for this nationwide talent hunt were already under active consideration to help India build a competitive footing in historically underrepresented disciplines like aquatics and cycling. Although these two sports collectively offer upwards of 100 Olympic medals, India has yet to secure a podium finish in them.
This strategic blueprint mirrors the successful model implemented by China ahead of the 2008 Beijing Olympics, where targeted focus on disciplines like boxing, canoeing, and archery dramatically transformed their medal output and propelled them to a historic tally of 100 medals.
Driving India's expansion plan would be aquatics, cycling, rowing and gymnastics.
At the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, aquatics—encompassing swimming, diving, water polo, artistic swimming, and open water swimming—will feature 55 medal events out of a total of more than 350 medals contested across 36 disciplines.
But India is not expected to get any of these.
Similarly, rowing will feature 15 events offering a total of 45 medals in Los Angeles, while cycling will contest 22 events with 66 medals up for grabs.
In addition to being a primary contender for the 2036 Olympic Games, Ahmedabad is also set to host the prestigious 2030 Commonwealth Games
The upcoming talent search program will heavily integrate Artificial Intelligence to conduct fitness battery tests—a comprehensive series of exercises designed to evaluate cardiovascular endurance, muscular strength, speed, agility, flexibility, balance, and overall movement.
"Not every school-going kid would know his sporting capabilities or take to sport naturally. But if we are able to take our talent hunt nationwide through basic tests to understand individual capabilities, we might find kids who are good at sport but don't yet know about it," a government source had told PTI in January.
Right now, the government's Khelo India Talent Development (KITD) scheme focuses on identifying young sporting talent at all levels.
The programme provides formative training and creates a pathway to Khelo India Academies, National Camps, and other elite sports schemes.
As per the Sports Ministry, there are 1067 Khelo India Centres (KICs) for this across the nation.
More Sports Events In India
The Prime Minister also said that India should aspire to host more international events.
"Duniya ke sports events Bharat mein kyu na hon? (Why should global events not be held in India)," he asked.
Led by Sports Minister Mansukh Mandaviya, the Sports Ministry has already released a packed calendar featuring 11 international sporting events scheduled across India over the next six months, highlighted by the Badminton World Championships starting locally on Monday.
(Using PTI Inputs)
