IOC asks Randhir Singh to continue as acting head of Olympic Council of Asia after ‘interference in election’
- IOC bans former OCA head Sheikh Ahmad for 3 years after his brother wins over votes in recent election
- Sheikh Ahmad’s presence during elections is being investigated as a potential plot to gain political advantage
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has asked India’s Randhir Singh to continue as acting head of the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA), according to a letter addressing Singh, following the IOC’s refusal to recognise the Asian governing body’s elections.
Earlier this week, the IOC banned Kuwait’s Sheikh Ahmad Al-Fahad Al-Sabah for three years, saying he had an “undeniable impact” on July’s OCA elections in which his brother Sheikh Talal Fahad Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah was appointed president.
Sheikh Ahmad travelled to Bangkok ahead of the election and was present in the city when the voting took place, a move which was “interpreted as interference in the election process” by the IOC’s ethics commission. Sheikh Ahmad has denied any wrongdoing.
Sheikh Talal was appointed OCA president by a margin of 24 votes to 20 over fellow Kuwaiti, Husain Al-Musallam.
However, the ethics commission said the IOC should not “recognise these elections until a full review of the OCA’s elections process is carried out at a later stage”.
Sheikh Talal was expected to take over from Singh, a former Olympic skeet shooter who was appointed acting president of the OCA in 2021, when Sheikh Ahmad stepped down as president after being convicted by a Swiss criminal court of forgery.