Indian Olympic Association (IOA) president PT Usha has lost the Sportspersons of Outstanding Merit (SOM) election, dealing a serious blow to her hopes of a second term in charge of Indian sport.

Usha finished fifth in the six-candidate women's poll held virtually on Monday, 9 November, receiving 40 votes and missing out on one of the four available places. Former long jumper Anju Bobby George topped the poll with 53 votes, followed by former women's hockey captain Rani Rampal with 50, former archer Dola Banerjee with 45 and former badminton star Saina Nehwal with 43. Former basketball player Anitha Paul Durai received six votes from the 80 polled.

What the result means for Usha

The result is a major setback for Usha, who became the first woman president of the IOA in December 2022 after entering the organisation through the same SOM route. The four elected women will now join the IOA General Assembly, giving them voting rights and making them eligible to contest the Executive Council elections on 5 December, which will decide the leadership of Indian sport for the 2026-2030 term.

Usha is not formally ruled out of the December elections, but she can only contest them if a National Sports Federation nominates her to the General Assembly, a route that appears unlikely. The four male SOM representatives - Olympic medallists Gagan Narang, Yogeshwar Dutt and Vijender Singh, and former table tennis player Kamlesh Mehta - had already been elected unopposed on 7 November after other contenders withdrew.

Controversy around the poll

The election was not without controversy. Usha lodged a complaint with electoral officer Sanjay Kumar Srivastava, alleging that Banerjee had breached the model code of conduct by circulating a message seeking votes. Banerjee was among the four women elected.

Narang, who won Olympic bronze in shooting at London 2012, is now being discussed as a leading contender for the IOA presidency when the Executive Council is elected on 5 December. Saina Nehwal, Anju Bobby George and the other newly elected SOM members are also eligible to stand.

The electoral process is being conducted under the National Sports Governance Act, 2025, the National Sports Governance (National Sports Bodies) Rules, 2026, and the amended IOA Constitution.

Usha, one of India's greatest athletes, won 23 medals at the Asian Games during a celebrated sprinting career and narrowly missed an Olympic medal in the 400m hurdles at Los Angeles 1984. Her four years as IOA president have been marked by public disputes with members of the executive council, and Monday's result brings her administrative tenure to an uncertain close ahead of the December vote.