The National Games 2023 will be held in Goa next October, the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) confirmed on Saturday.
The dates for the 37th edition of the National Games will be finalised later to avoid clashing with major international events.
“The date of the 37th National Games will be decided keeping in view the dates of the 19th Asian Games, which will be held from September 23 to October 8 next year in Hangzhou, China,” IOA secretary general Rajeev Mehta informed.
The 35th edition of the National Games was held in Kerala in 2015 while Goa was awarded the hosting rights for the 36th edition, initially scheduled for 2016.
However, after multiple postponements and further delays due to COVID-19, the marquee event was moved to Gujarat earlier this year. The National Games are currently underway.
This will be the first time that Goa will be hosting the National Games.
The National Games is India’s homespun Olympic-style multi-sport event where athletes from the various states and Union Territories of India compete for medals. More than 7,000 athletes are competing in over 30 sports, including non-Olympic ones, at the ongoing National Games.
The objective of the National Games is to identify sporting talent who could represent the country at the Olympics. Several prominent Indian athletes like Neeraj Chopra, PT Usha, Dipa Karmakar and Sajan Prakash have participated in the National Games over the years.
The National Games were first held in Lahore, undivided India, in 1924. The ongoing Games are being held across six cities in Gujarat – Ahmedabad, Gandhinagar, Surat, Vadodara, Rajkot and Bhavnagar.
