Randhir Singh (sports administrator)

Randhir Singh (born 18 October 1946) is an Indian sports administrator and former sports shooter. Singh is one of India's most influential sports administrators and is noted for his wide-ranging international connections. He has held several positions in both Indian and international sports governing bodies, and also had a successful shooting career before retiring from the sport in 1994. Singh began his sports administration career in 1984, while he was still competing as a shooter.

Singh has been the Acting President of the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) since 11 September 2021. His other roles in international sports administration include being a member of the IOC from 2001 to 2014; since 2014, he has been an honorary member of the IOC. He had also served as the Secretary General of the OCA from 1991 to 2015. In domestic sports administration, his roles have included being the Secretary General of the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) from 1987 to 2012 and a member of the governing board of the Sports Authority of India from 1987 to 2010. Singh's role was crucial in bringing the 2010 Commonwealth Games to Delhi.

Singh was an Olympic-level trap and skeet shooter. His achievements during his shooting career include competing in five Olympic Games and becoming the first Indian shooter to win a gold medal in the Asian Games, at the 1978 Asian Games. He received the Arjuna Award in 1979 for his achievements in shooting. Singh retired as a sports shooter in 1994.

Early life and education
Randhir Singh was born on 18 October 1946 in Patiala, Punjab Province, British India. He is the son of Bhalindra Singh, a younger son of Maharaja Bhupinder Singh of Patiala. Singh comes from a family of influential sports administrators. His father, Bhalindra, was a member of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) from 1947 to 1992, President of the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) from 1960 to 1975 and 1990 to 1984, and was crucial in bringing the 1982 Asian Games to Delhi. Singh's uncle, Yadavindra Singh, the last Maharaja of Patiala, played an important part in lobbying for and then organizing the first Asian Games, held in 1951, in Delhi.

Singh was educated at Yadvindra Public School in Patiala and graduated from St. Stephen's College with a Bachelor of Arts in History. Singh played cricket in school and college as a one-down batsman who also opened the bowling for his school and college teams.

Shooting career
Singh was introduced to shooting by his aunt, who was a national-level shooter. In 1963, while participating in a national competition in India, he shot 25 out of 25 clay pigeons in the first round. Singh made his competitive senior shooting debut as an eighteen-year-old, when he was part of the winning trap shooting team at the Indian National Championships in 1964. The team successfully defended the title in 1965, and Singh won his first national individual title in 1967 in skeet shooting. He went on to win multiple titles at the national level in both skeet and trap shooting.

In his youth, Singh aspired to play cricket for the Indian national cricket team, however, he stopped playing cricket as his shooting career flourished and he started representing India in international shooting competitions. He became the first Indian shooter to win a gold medal in the Asian Games, which he did during the 1978 Asian Games in Bangkok, Thailand. Singh received the Arjuna Award in 1979. During the 1982 Asian Games in Delhi, Singh was part of the Indian team that won a silver medal.

From 1968 to 1984, Singh competed at five Olympic Games in mixed trap. He was the second Indian, after Karni Singh, to compete at five Olympics. His best Olympic performance was 17th at the 1968 Olympics, two points behind Karni Singh and four points from bronze. He has also competed at four Asian Games, winning a medal of each color. His last international competition was the 1994 Asian Games in Hiroshima, Japan. Singh, who had been the Secretary General of the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) since 1991, became the first person to compete in the Asian Games while being an office bearer in a continental sports organisation.

Sports administration career
Singh began his sports administration career in 1984, when he was elected to the IOA as a joint secretary. He was elected to the IOC during the 112th IOC session in 2001, which was held in Moscow, Russia. In the election, Singh received 101 votes, which was the highest amongst all the candidates. He served as a member of the IOC from 2001 to 2014, and has been an honorary member of the IOC since 2014. Singh was an influential member of the IOC during his time as a full member of the organisation.

Singh had served as the Secretary General of the IOA from 1987 to 2012 and was a member of the governing board of the Sports Authority of India from 1987 to 2010. He was also a member of the World Anti-Doping Agency Foundation Board from 2003 to 2005 and is a member of the Executive Board of the Association of National Olympic Committees (ANOC) since 2002.

Singh has served on the following commissions: Olympic Games Study from 2002 to 2003, Sport for All since 2004, Women and Sport since 2006, Coordination for the 1st Summer Youth Olympic Games in Singapore in 2010 and the Olympic Truce Foundation since 2007. He was the Founder Secretary General of the Afro-Asian Games Council from 1998 to 2007 and helped lead the organization of the only Afro-Asian Games, which was held in Hyderabad in 2003.

2010 Commonwealth Games
Singh was instrumental in bringing the 2010 Commonwealth Games to Delhi and was the Vice Chairman of the Organizing Committee. He was the only senior office bearer of the controversial Organizing Committee who had a clean image. During the planning of the 2010 Commonwealth Games, Singh and Suresh Kalmadi, President of the IOA at the time, clashed over the planning of the games. Reportedly, the clashes had reach the extent where Manmohan Singh, then-Prime Minister of India, had to be informed by the head of the Commonwealth Games, Mike Fennell.

Olympic Council of Asia
Singh served as the Secretary General of the OCA from 1991 to 2015 and Life Vice President of the OCA from 2015 to 2021. In 2019, he was appointed by the General Assembly of the OCA as the chairman of the Coordination Committee of the 2022 Asian Games, which was held in Hangzhou, China. Singh has been the Acting President of the OCA since 2021.

Acting presidency (2021-present)
In September 2021, Singh was appointed as the Acting President of the OCA. He was appointed as the Acting President of the OCA after Sheikh Ahmed Al-Fahad Al-Ahmed Al-Sabah stepped aside as president following a guilty verdict against him by a Geneva Court in a forgery case. In May 2022, after the OCA Executive Board meeting in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, he stated that the 2022 Asian Games will be postponed to 2023 due to the COVID-19 pandemic in China. During his trip to Uzbekistan, Singh met with senior Uzbek politicians, which included Prime Minister of Uzbekistan Abdulla Aripov, at the Palace of International Forums for a celebration to mark the 30th anniversary of ANOC.

In October 2022, Singh in the OCA General Assembly meeting in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, said that the state of the OCA has now normalised post the COVID-19 pandemic. At the 2022 OCA General Assembly, Singh was one of the signatories that signed the contract to host the 2029 Asian Winter Games held in Trojena, NEOM, Saudi Arabia. Also in October 2022, Singh spoke at the OCA's first-ever Gender Equity Seminar in Manama, Bahrain.

Singh, as the Acting President of the OCA, attended the 11th Olympic Summit in December 2022, which was held in Lausanne, Switzerland. During the summit, there was an intense debate regarding the participation of Russian and Belarusian athletes in international competitions. The IOC mentioned that it had not invited athletes from the National Olympic Committees (NOCs) of both countries as protective measures, due to concerns about interference from some governments that can decide which athletes participate in international competitions and concerns about guaranteeing the safety of athletes from the two countries, because of the Russo-Ukrainian war. During the debate, Singh argued that the reasons for the protective measures do not exist in any longer in Asia. He further argued that the OCA has offered to facilitate the participation of athletes from both countries in competitions within Asia that are under the OCA's authority, and at the same time, comply with the sanctions that are in place on Russia and Belarus due to the war. The Olympic Summit unanimously agreed to further look into the OCA's proposal.

In January 2023, the IOC agreed to the OCA's proposal and allowed athletes from Russia and Belarus to compete in competitions organised by the OCA to potentially qualify for the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris. The IOC also added that the athletes from both countries will compete as neutral athletes and will not represent their countries. Singh stated that the athletes from both countries will not interfere with Asian athletes for medals from OCA organised competitions or for qualification places for the Olympics. Singh also stated that the athletes from both countries will be awarded serperate medals from the Asian athletes and that the IOC will be implementing a separate quota system for Olympic qualifications for Russian and Belarusian athletes.

However, the IOC's decision was criticised by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Zelenskyy also sent a letter to the leaders of various global governing bodies asking them to stop the participation of athletes from Russia and Belarus. In July 2023, the OCA voted to allow athletes from Russia and Belarus to participate in the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games under a neutral flag. Singh stated that the athletes from the two countries will not interfere with other Asian Games athletes' medals or Olympic quotas for the 2024 Summer Olympics.

On 8 July 2023, Singh was succeeded by Sheikh Talal Fahad Al Ahmad Al-Sabah as President of the OCA, who was elected to the position at the 42nd OCA General Assembly in Bangkok. Talal Fahad Al Ahmad Al-Sabah is the brother of Ahmed Al-Fahad Al-Ahmed Al-Sabah. However, on 30 July 2023, the IOC sent a letter to Singh, in which the IOC asked him to continue as the Acting President of the OCA while they investigated the 2023 OCA presidential election. The IOC alleged that Ahmed Al-Fahad Al-Ahmed Al-Sabah had interfered and tampered with the election, and the IOC had therefore refused to recognise the electoral results.

In September 2023, Singh traveled to Hangzhou for the 2022 Asian Games. On 22 September 2023, he met with Paramount leader and Chinese President Xi Jinping, and other senior Chinese politicians which included Cai Qi, Ding Xuexiang, Wang Yi and Shen Yiqin, one day before the opening of the games. On 23 September 2023, Singh addressed the crowd during the opening ceremony of the games at the Hangzhou Olympic Sports Expo Center. On 8 October 2023, Singh declared the 19th Asian Games closed in the presence of Chinese premier Li Qiang and other dignitaries during the closing ceremony.

In December 2023, the OCA's member NOCs ratified by a two-thirds majority to nullify the OCA presidential elections that took place in July 2023. Singh continues in his position as the Acting President of the OCA until constitutional reforms are implemented and a new elective Congress is held. In February 2024, while working on the sports programme for the 2026 Asian Games in Aichi and Nagoya, Japan, Singh stated that cricket should be included in the 2026 Asian Games. In March 2024, he criticized the progress of India's swimming programme compared to other Olympic sports. Also in March 2024, Singh, led an OCA delegation to meet IOA president P.T. Usha, as part of the IOA's efforts to support India's potential bid to host the 2025 Asian Beach Games. In May 2024, Singh presided over the 43rd OCA General Assembly in Bangkok.

Awards

 * Arjuna Award - 1979
 * Maharaja Ranjit Singh Award - 1979
 * Merit Award from OCA - 2005
 * Merit Award from ANOC - 2006
 * Olympic Order, Silver - 2014
 * Honorary Doctorate of literature from Lakshmibai National Institute of Physical Education, Government of India

Personal life
Singh is married to Vinita Singh (née Khanna), who is a businesswoman. Vinita is the eldest child and only daughter of businessman Vipin Khanna, and a member of the Khanna family. His first marriage was to Uma Kumari. Singh has 3 daughters; Mahima, Sunaina and Rajeshwari. Sunaina served as one of the vice-presidents of the IOA. Rajeshwari Kumari is an Olympic-level sports shooter and a fashion designer. Rajeshwari is Singh's daughter through his second marriage to Vinita.