India’s 2036 Olympics bid: ‘3 dialogues’, process, guarantees, voting explained

In the midst of the cricket World Cup fever that has gripped India, Modi’s Olympic statement is massive. After inaugurating the 141st Session of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in Mumbai on Saturday, Modi declared, “India will leave no stone unturned in organising the 2036 Olympics.”

“Indians are very excited about hosting the Olympic Games. This is a dream of 140 crore Indians. We want to fulfil this dream with your support. We are willing to host the 2029 Youth Olympics. I am sure India will get constant support from IOC,” said Modi.

Now it is official that India, which has not hosted a major multi-sport event since the Commonwealth Games 2010 in Delhi, will bid to host the Olympics for the first time.

Here is an explainer on how a country can bid to host the Olympics and what are the processes involved.

The first step

PM Modi has officially announced India’s interest in bidding to host the 2036 Olympics. However, just his statement will not confirm India’s candidature to host the Games. The first and foremost process is that a country’s National Olympic Committee (NOC) has to make a formal approach to the IOC about its interest to bid to host the Olympics. In India’s case, the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) has to officially make the bid. Though Modi did not mention which Indian city would be picked to bid to host the Games, reports say it would be Ahmedabad, Gujarat.

3-stage dialogue

The bid process involves three stages of dialogues – ‘Informal Exchange’, ‘Continuous Dialogue’, and ‘Targeted Dialogue’, according to the IOC.

Informal Exchange: At it states, it is in an informal exchange between NOC that wants to explore interest in hosting Olympics. Here, the IOC administration will provide potential hosts (city/region and respective NOC) with information about the approach to elections and share contextual advice on how to engage with various stakeholders to initiate an Olympic project. The discussion will be non-edition specific, no official letter by the NOC is required, no commitment on either side, and no submission required.

Continuous Dialogue: “The Continuous Dialogue is a non-committal and non-edition specific phase where the IOC supports the Interested Party to explore the feasibility of hosting sustainable Games in their contest and in line with their local long-term development goals,” says the IOC. To enter into a continuous dialogue with the IOC, the NOC has to submit an official letter of intent to the IOC indicating the Interested Party (City or Region).

At this stage, IOC's Future Host Commissions constantly monitor and analyse projects by Interested Parties and conduct feasibility assessments that will form the basis for regular updates and a possible recommendation to the IOC Executive Board (EB) regarding a specific edition of the Games.

"In line with Olympic Agenda 2020, the Future Host Commissions take into account independent third-party reports as part of the assessment of Interested Parties in Continuous Dialogue," says the IOC.

Among the criteria for assessment are the:

Geopolitical, socio-economic, human development and environmental factors

Vision and venue masterplan

Alignment with existing long-term development plans

Envisaged sustainability and legacy impacts

Political and public support

Funding strategy

Sports event experience, accommodation capacity, transport infrastructure, and safety and security.

Targeted Dialogue: The IOC Executive Board can take a strategic decision to open a targeted dialogue with one or more preferred hosts. This decision will be based on recommendations made by the Future Host Commission as a result of continuous dialogue.

The Future Host Commission is responsible for conducting an in-depth assessment of the preferred hosts, including visiting the hosts, if necessary, and publishing a report for the IOC EB.

Based on a report of the Future Host Commission, the Executive Board may put forward the preferred hosts for election by the IOC Session.

Which countries are bidding to host 2036 Olympics?

While it is still not officially confirmed, according to an IOC official there are more than 10 countries including India, Poland, Indonesia, Mexico, and Turkey who have evinced interest in the 2036 Games hosting bid.

Are the 2028 and 2032 Olympic hosts confirmed?

Yes. The 2028 Olympics will be in Los Angeles, US while Australian city Brisbane will host the 2032 Games. The next edition of the Games – 2024, will be held in Paris, France.

When will we know the host of 2036 Olympics?

The election to pick the host of the 2036 Olympics will take place only after 2025.

Submission by Preferred Hosts

A bidding nation is required to make a submission to the IOC in response to the Future Host Questionnaire.

The submission demonstrates an effective Games concept and legacy plan which sets out the following elements:

Vision, Games Concept and Legacy

Games Experience for Athletes and Fans

Paralympic Games

Sustainability

Support for the Games and Games Governance

Economics of the Games

Government’s support

To organise the Olympics, partnership and support are required from the host country's government, as well as other relevant public authorities and private actors. The hosts have to submit a set of guarantees.

Election of Olympic host

Once the EB calls an election by the IOC Session, the Preferred Hosts will be invited to engage with IOC Members on two occasions: during consultation meeting to present and discuss their project, and during the election session where they have to make a final presentation, following a final presentation by the Future Host Commission.

New approach to electing hosts

The approach to electing Olympic hosts has been reshaped in recent years, starting with the adoption of Olympic Agenda 2020 in 2014.

Further changes followed with the 'New Norm', to create a flexible and collaborative partnership between potential hosts and the IOC, and ensure that future Olympic Games are designed to meet the needs of local communities and align with existing long-term development plans.

Elements of the current selection process – such as a non-committal dialogue, flexibility, and knowledge sharing – were incorporated into election of Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics. The new process was fully implemented for the election of Brisbane 2032.

IOC’s ‘New Norm’ encourages using existing infrastructure

Driven by Olympic Agenda 2020 and the New Norm, the Games’ organisation and host election must be sustainable and cost-effective. Potential hosts should use as many existing or temporary facilities as possible, even outside the main host region or country, if there is no proven legacy for new venues.

No permanent Olympic construction may take place in a statutory nature or culture protected area, or UNESCO World Heritage site. From 2030, all Olympic Games must be climate positive, says the IOC.

With not many existing facilities, is it a disadvantage to India?

No. India, which is not known to boast of world-class stadiums when it comes to non-cricket sports, will have to build facilities if it wants to host the Olympics. While IOC encourages host nations to cut down costs and use existing and temporary facilities, it doesn’t discourage building new infrastructure.

“For example, (in) Paris, 95 per cent of the venues are already in existence, or temporary. In Los Angeles, everything is already there. They didn't have to build a single thing. But that doesn't mean that if you have a good legacy plan… “If you say, this city needs a swimming pool, as Paris has done — they're actually building a village and swimming pool. They're saying they have a long term legacy for this, and we want this,” an IOC official said.

“So if a city in India said they want to improve their sporting infrastructure, and they want to invest this money anyway, that won't stop the bid. What we're trying to do is find what works for your city, your region. And that will be different from your city in India, to Indonesia, to the US,” the official explained.

Number of athletes at the Olympics

More than 10,000 athletes will compete at the Olympics, from over 200 countries.

How much will it cost to host the Olympics?

The last edition of the Olympics, held in 2021 in Tokyo, Japan, incurred 20 per cent more than what the organisers had said. The total cost of Tokyo Olympics 2020 was $12.9 billion (More than Rs 89,000 crore). For India to build new stadiums and other costs involved, the cost of hosting the 2036 Olympics (if it wins the bid), would be an estimated more than what Japan spent, amounting to more than Rs 1 lakh crore.