India helped found the Asian Games in 1951 as a statement of post-colonial Asian solidarity. Discuss the role of sport as an instrument of India's soft power and regional diplomacy.

The name "Asian Games" was chosen at the 1947 conference of Asian countries in New Delhi, on a proposal by India's IOC member Prof. G.D. Sondhi. In 1951 India hosted the first Asiad to rebuild ties that the war had broken [1]. Since then sport has been a quiet but useful instrument of Indian soft power, though it has limits.

Sport as soft power

• Normative leadership: The 1951 Games brought together 11 nations and 489 athletes [1]. They presented India as the convenor of a decolonised Asia, in line with Nehruvian Asian solidarity.
• Cultural projection: In 2026 India won medals in kabaddi, wushu, kurash and sepak takraw [1]. This showcased indigenous and Asian sporting traditions on a continental stage.
• Inclusive image: India recorded its highest-ever tally at the 2023 Asian Para Games [3], which supports its image as a rights-based society.
• Role models: Flag-bearers such as Manu Bhaker and Pawan Sehrawat [1] put a human face on India's image across Asia.

Sport in regional diplomacy

• Contact with Pakistan: The 2026 men's cricket final was India vs Pakistan, and India won by 19 runs [1]. Sport is one of the few remaining points of regular contact between the two countries.
• Multilateral platform: The Olympic Council of Asia has 45 members and aims at friendship through sport [1]. This lets India engage East, West and Central Asia beyond formal summits.
• Bilateral bridges: Japan hosted its third Asiad in 2026 [1]. The Games add a people-to-people strand to the India–Japan partnership.

Limitations

• Performance dilutes appeal: India won 85 medals in 2026 [1], down from 107 at Hangzhou [2]. Soft power depends on visible excellence.
• Nationalism: High-stakes rivalries can harden public attitudes as easily as they ease them.
• Institutional gaps: About 45% of SAI posts are vacant, and academies for indigenous games and martial arts get no regular financial help [4]. These are the very sports that carry India's culture.

Sport has served India as a bridge to Asia, from the 1951 Asiad to Aichi-Nagoya. To strengthen this, India should act on the Standing Committee's call for a statutory SAI [4] and implement the National Sports Policy 2025 [5]. Doing so would turn sporting strength into lasting goodwill and renew the spirit of Asian solidarity that India helped start in 1951.