Chennai is set to bring the Asian Athletics Championships back to India in 2029

Chennai is on the verge of securing the rights to host the 2029 Asian Athletics Championships, with the Asian Athletics Association (AAA) awaiting formal assurance from the Tamil Nadu government before making the award official.

The continental body’s council discussed the proposal at its 107th meeting in Tokyo on Tuesday. Final confirmation is expected once the state government submits the required financial and administrative guarantees.

“On submission of letters of guarantee from the government, the Asian Athletics Association is pleased to award the 2029 Asian Championships to Chennai, Tamil Nadu,” it said in a statement.

C Latha, a senior official of the Tamil Nadu Athletics Association, who is in Tokyo as part of the Indian contingent, said the documents are expected to be handed over on Wednesday.

“We made a presentation and the Asian Athletics Association (AAA) asked us to submit financial and other guarantees from the state government. AAA said they will award the 2029 Asian Championship to Chennai once they get the guarantees,” Latha told PTI from Tokyo.

“We hope to get assurances from our state government tomorrow. So the final decision is expected to come tomorrow,” she added.

World Athletics Vice President and Athletics Federation of India (AFI) spokesperson Adille Sumariwalla was also present at the meeting. He confirmed that Chennai will get the hosting rights once the state government receives the necessary guarantees.

If the event is completed, it will be the third occasion that India has hosted the Asian Athletics Championships. Pune hosted the competition in 2013, followed by Bhubaneswar in 2017. Chennai is all set to welcome the 28th edition of the biennale in 2029.

The next edition, the 27th in the series, is scheduled to take place in Xiamen, China between 28 May and 2 June 2027.

India is also gearing up to host several major athletics competitions in the coming years. Chandigarh is scheduled to host the Asian Relay Championships in August 2027, while Bhubaneswar will host both the Asian Athletics Indoor Championships and the World Indoor Championships in 2028.

The country is also vying to bring the World Under-20 Athletics Championships to Ahmedabad in 2028.

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