PT Usha Set To Become First Female President Of Indian Olympic Association

The former track and field athlete PT Usha is set to become the first female president of the Indian Olympic Association (IOA). The 58-year-old filed her nomination papers for the IOA and emerged as the lone candidate for the post.

The deadline to file nomination papers for the December 10 IOA elections ended on Sunday, November 27. Usha was the only person to apply for the post of president, which will make her the first female president of the association. 24 candidates filed nominations for various posts in the IOA.

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PT Usha IOA

PT Usha was also elected as one of the eight Sportspersons of Outstanding Merit by the IOA’s Athletes Commission. This makes her an electoral college member.

Usha will also become the first Olympian and international medallist to head the IOA in its 95 year history. She is also the first sportsperson who represented the country and also became the chief of the IOA since Maharaja Yadavindra Singh.

The IOA polls will be held to elect one president, one senior vice-president, two vice-presidents (one male and one female), two joint secretaries (one male and one female), one treasurer, six other Executive Council members, two of whom will be Sportspersons of Outstanding Merit.

PT Usha is a retired track and field athlete who was born in Kuttali, Kozhikode, Kerala. During her impressive career, the sprinter known as the “Queen of Indian track and field” won 18 gold medals and 13 silver medals in international competitions.

She won 11 medals at the Asian Games, including 4 gold medals. During the Seoul Asian Games, she won all four gold medals, 200m, 400m, 400m hurdles, and 4x400m relay and also won a silver medal.

Usha represented India in the 400m relay race with Valdivel Jayalakshmi, EB Shyla, and Rachita Mistry at the 1998 Asian Championships in Athletics. Her team won the gold medal and set the current national record of 44.43 seconds.

She is also a member of the Board of Advisors of India’s International Movement to Unite Nations (IIMUN).

In 2022, she was nominated to the Rajya Sabha by former President Ram Nath Kovind.