Five-time world champion boxer MC Mary Kom, double Olympic medallist PV Sindhu and multiple-time winter Olympian Shiva Keshavan were among 10 eminent sportspersons elected unopposed as members of the IOA Athletes Commission in the polls held in New Delhi on Monday. The other seven members of the apex body are Tokyo Olympics silver medallist weightlifter Mirabai Chanu, 2012 Olympics bronze winner shooter Gagan Narang, veteran table tennis player Achanta Sharath Kamal, ace hockey player Rani Rampal, cyclist Bhavani Devi, rower Bajrang Lal and former shot putter OP Karhana.
All the 10 members, out of which five are female, are Olympians. Keshavan is the only Winter Olympian.
Only 10 candidates filed nominations for the same number of seats in the Athletes Commission and Umesh Sinha, who is also the returning officer of the upcoming IOA elections, declared all of them elected unopposed.
India's first individual Olympic gold medallist shooter Abhinav Bindra and former India hockey team captain Sardar Singh will complete the 12-member athletes commission in their capacity as members of the corresponding bodies of the International Olympic Committee and Olympic Council of Asia respectively. Both of them will have voting rights.
Bindra was appointed as member of IOC Athletes Commission in 2018 for a eight-year term while Sardar was made OCA Athletes Committee member in 2019 for a four-year term. Under the new constitution of the Indian Olympic Association which was adopted on November 10, the athletes commission is to have equal representation of male and female members.
Keshavan, who has represented India in six Winter Olympics, said this was the first full fledged athletes commission in IOA history.
"Yes, this is a historic moment for the athletes of the country. We now have a proper and full fledged athletes commission for the first time in IOA history," Keshavan told PTI.
Two members of the athlete commission -- one male and one female -- will sit at the IOA Executive Council, which will be elected on December 10 on the orders of the Supreme Court.
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