Asian Games

For the most recent games, held in Jakarta and Palembang, see 2018 Asian Games. For the next games, to be held in Hangzhou, see 2022 Asian Games. For the 1993 live album, see Asian Games (album).

The Asian Games, also known as Asiad,^[1] is a continental multi-sport event held every four years among athletes from all over Asia. The Games were regulated by the Asian Games Federation (AGF) from the first Games in New Delhi, India, until the 1978 Games. Since the 1982 Games, they have been organized by the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA), after the breakup of the Asian Games Federation.^[2] The Games are recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and are described as the second largest multi-sport event after the Olympic Games.^[3][4]

Asian Games

Abbreviation	Asiad
Motto	Ever Onward
First event	1951 Asian Games in New Delhi, India
Occur every	Four years
Last event	2018 Asian Games in Jakarta-Palembang, Indonesia
Next event	2022 Asian Games in Hangzhou, China
Purpose	Multi-sport event for nations in Asia

There have been nine nations that have hosted the Asian Games. Forty-six nations have participated in the Games, including Israel, which was excluded from the Games after their last participation in 1974. The most recent games was held in Jakarta and Palembang, Indonesia from 18 August to 2 September 2018. The next games are scheduled to be held in Hangzhou, China.

Since 2010, host cities manage both the Asian Games and the Asian Para Games, the latter an event for athletes with disabilities to compete with each other. The Asian Para Games are held immediately following the Asian Games, but the exclusion of Asian Para Games from any Asian Games host city contract means that both events will run independently of each other.

History

Prior formation

The Far Eastern Championship Games existed previous to the Asian Games, the former mooted in 1912 for a location set between Japan, the Philippines, and China. The inaugural Far Eastern Games were held in Manila in 1913 with 6 participating nations. There were ten Far Eastern Games held by 1934. The second Sino-Japanese War in 1934, and Japan's insistence on including the Manchu Empire as a competitor nation in the Games, brought China to announce its withdrawal from participation. The Far Eastern Games scheduled for 1938 were cancelled. The organization was discontinued.^[5]

Formation

After World War II, several areas in Asia became sovereign states. Many of these countries sought to exhibit Asian prowess without violence. At the London 1948 Summer Olympics, a conversation started amongst China and the Philippines to restore the idea of the Far Eastern Games. Guru Dutt Sondhi, the Indian International Olympic Committee representative, believed that the restoration of the Far Eastern Games would sufficiently display the spirit of unity and level of achievement taking place in Asian sports. He proposed the idea of a new competition  – which came to be the Asian Games. The Asian Athletic Federation would eventually be formed. A preparatory committee was set up to draft the charter for this new body. On 13 February 1949, the Asian Athletic Federation was formally inaugurated in and New Delhi, announced as the inaugural host city to be held in 1950.^[6][7]

Crisis, reorganisation, expansion

 

The first Asian Games opening ceremony

In 1962, the Games were hit by several crises. The host country Indonesia, refused to permit the participation of Israel and Taiwan due to political recognition issues. The IOC terminated its sponsorship of the Games and terminated Indonesia's membership in the IOC.^[8] The Asian Football Confederation (AFC),^[9] International Amateur Athletics Federation (IAAF) and International Weightlifting Federation (IWF), also removed their recognition of the Games.^[10][11]

South Korea renounced its plan to host the 1970 Asian Games on the grounds of a national security crisis; the main reason was due to a financial crisis. The previous host, Thailand, would host the Games in Bangkok using funds transferred from South Korea.^[12] Japan was asked to host but declined the opportunity as they were already committed to Expo '70 in Osaka.^[13] This edition marked the Games' inaugural television broadcasting, world-wide.^[14] In Tehran, in 1974, the Games formally recognized the participation of China, North Korea and Mongolia. Israel was allowed to participate despite the opposition from the Arab world, while Taiwan was permitted to continue taking part (as "Chinese Taipei") although its status was abolished in general meeting on 16 November 1973 by Games Federation.^[15]

Prior to the 1978 Games, Pakistan retracted its plan to host the 1975 Games due to a financial crisis and political issues.^[16] Thailand offer to host and the Games were held in Bangkok. As in 1962, Taiwan and Israel were refused the participation by Games Federation, amid political issues and security fears.^[17] Several governing bodies protested the ban. The IAAF threatened to bar the participating athletes from the 1980 Summer Olympics.^[18] Several nations withdraw prior to the Games opening.^[19]

These events led the National Olympic Committees in Asia to revise the constitution of the Asian Games Federation. The Olympic Council of Asia was created in November 1981, excluding Israel.^[20] India was scheduled to host in 1982 and the OCA decided not to drop the old AGF timetable. The OCA formally started to supervise the Games with the South Korea 1986 Asian Games.^[21] In the succeeding Games, Taiwan (Republic of China) was re-admitted, under pressure by the People's Republic of China to compete as Chinese Taipei.^[22]

In 1994, the Games included the inaugural participation of the former republics of the Soviet Union: Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. It was also the inaugural Games held in a host country outside its capital city.^[23] However, Iraq was suspended from the Games due to the 1990 Persian Gulf War. North Korea boycotted the Games due to political issues. The Games were hampered during the opening ceremony by the death of Nareshkumar Adhikari, the chief of the Nepalese delegation.^[24]

The 1998 Games marked the fourth time the Games were held in Bangkok, Thailand. The opening ceremony was on 6 December; the previous three were on 9 December. King Bhumibol Adulyadej opened the Games; the closing ceremony was on 20 December (the same date as all the previous games hosted by Thailand).

 

1974 Asian Games medal

Symbols

The Asian Games Movement uses symbols to represent the ideals embodied in the Asian Games charter. The Asian Games motto is "Ever Onward" which was designed and proposed by Guru Dutt Sondhi upon the creation of the Asian Games Federation in 1949. The Asian Games symbol is a bright sun in red with 16 rays and a white circle in the middle of its disc which represents the ever glimmering and warm spirit of the Asian people.

Mascots

Main article: List of Asian Games mascots

Since the 1982 Asian Games in New Delhi, India, the Asian Games have had a mascot, usually an animal native to the area or occasionally human figures representing the cultural heritage.

Participation

See also: Olympic Council of Asia

All 45 members affiliated to the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) are eligible to participate in the Games.

According to membership in the OCA, transcontinental Kazakhstan participates in the Asian Games but Egypt does not as a country with Asian minor region in Sinai, participating in the African Games instead. Various countries participating in the European Games rather than the Asian Games whose major geographical parts located in Asian continent: Turkey and Russia/Soviet Union; almost completely in Asia: Azerbaijan and Georgia; wholly in Asia: Cyprus, Armenia, and Israel.

In history, 46 National Olympic Committees (NOCs) have sent competitors to the Games. Israel has been excluded from the Games since 1976, the reason cited as being due to security reasons.^[25] Israel requested to participate in the 1982 Games, but the request was rejected by the organizers due to the Munich massacre.^[26] Israel is now a member of the European Olympic Committees (EOC) and competes at the European Games.

Taiwan, Palestine, Hong Kong, and Macau participate in the Asian Games according to membership in OCA. Due to its continuing ambiguous political status, Taiwan participates in the Games under the flag of Chinese Taipei since 1990. Macau NOC is allowed to compete as one of the NOCs in Asian Games, despite not being recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) for participation in the Olympic Games.

In 2007, the President of OCA, Sheikh Ahmed Al-Fahad Al-Ahmed Al-Sabah, rejected the proposal to allow Australia to participate in the Games. He stated that while Australia would add good value to the Asian Games, it would be unfair to the Oceania National Olympic Committees (ONOC).^[27] Being members of ONOC, Australia and New Zealand participate in Pacific Games since 2015. This motion was mooted again in 2017 after Australia's participation in the 2017 Asian Winter Games as they are in discussions to become a full Asian Games member from 2022 or 2026.^[28] However, the Australian Olympic Committee announced that Australia would be allowed a small contingent of athletes for the 2022 Games, as long as the qualification for Summer Olympics events such as basketball and volleyball are through Asia.^[29]

There are only seven countries, namely India, Indonesia, Japan, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, Singapore and Thailand that have competed in all editions of the games.

List of Asian Games

 

 

1951, 1982

 

1954

 

1958

 

1962, 2018

 

1966, 1970, 1978, 1998

 

1974

 

1986

 

1990

 

1994

 

2002

 

2006, 2030

 

2010

 

2014

 

2018

 

2022

 

2026

 

2034

class=notpageimage|

Host cities of the Asian Games

Edition	Year	Host city(ies)	Host country	Opened by	Start date	End date	Nations	Competitors	Sports	Events	Top-ranked team	Ref.
I	1951	New Delhi	India	President Rajendra Prasad	4 March	11 March	11	489	6	57	Japan (JPN)	^[30]
II	1954	Manila	Philippines	President Ramon Magsaysay	1 May	9 May	18	970	8	76	Japan (JPN)	^[31]
III	1958	Tokyo	Japan	Emperor Shōwa	24 May	1 June	16	1,820	13	97	Japan (JPN)	^[32]
IV	1962	Jakarta	Indonesia	President Sukarno	24 August	4 September	12	1,460	13	88	Japan (JPN)	^[33]
V	1966	Bangkok	Thailand	King Bhumibol Adulyadej	9 December	20 December	16	1,945	14	143	Japan (JPN)	^[34]
VI	1970							2,400	13	135	Japan (JPN)	^[35]
VII	1974	Tehran	Iran	Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi	1 September	16 September	19	3,010	16	202	Japan (JPN)	^[36]
VIII	1978	Bangkok	Thailand	King Bhumibol Adulyadej	9 December	20 December		3,842	19	201	Japan (JPN)	^[37]
IX	1982	New Delhi	India	President Zail Singh	19 November	4 December	23	3,411	21	147	China (CHN)	^[38]
X	1986	Seoul	South Korea	President Chun Doo-hwan	20 September	5 October	22	4,839	25	270	China (CHN)	^[39]
XI	1990	Beijing	China	President Yang Shangkun	22 September	7 October	36	6,122	27	310	China (CHN)	^[40]
XII	1994	Hiroshima	Japan	Emperor Akihito	2 October	16 October	42	6,828	34	338	China (CHN)	^[41]
XIII	1998	Bangkok	Thailand	King Bhumibol Adulyadej	6 December	20 December	41	6,554	36	377	China (CHN)	^[42]
XIV	2002	Busan	South Korea	President Kim Dae-jung	29 September	14 October	44	7,711	38	419	China (CHN)	^[43]
XV	2006	Doha	Qatar	Emir Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani	1 December	15 December	45	9,520	39	424	China (CHN)	^[44]
XVI	2010	Guangzhou	China	Premier Wen Jiabao	12 November	27 November		9,704	42	476	China (CHN)	^[45]
XVII	2014	Incheon	South Korea	President Park Geun-hye	19 September	4 October		9,501	37	439	China (CHN)	^[46]
XVIII	2018	Jakarta and Palembang	Indonesia	President Joko Widodo	18 August	2 September		11,300	46	465	China (CHN)	^[47]
XIX	2022	Hangzhou	China	TBA	23 September 2023	8 October 2023	Future event					^[48]
XX	2026	Aichi-Nagoya	Japan	TBA	19 September	4 October	Future event
XXI	2030	Doha	Qatar	TBA	Future event
XXII	2034	Riyadh	Saudi Arabia	TBA	Future event

Sports

Main article: Asian Games sports

The average for the edition of events by the edition of the Asian Games is of nearly 260 events with 24 sports by edition. Fifty-one sports, spanning 39 different disciplines and nearly 400 events, have been part of the Asian Games program at one point or another, including the 2018 Games in Indonesia. The edition where the largest number of events was the Guangzhou 2010 Games, where 476 events in 42 sports were contested. The number of events varies according to edition and the demands of the local organizing committee, along with those of the host country. It was established in 2011, that the Games program would respect the eventual changes to the Olympic Games program along with this, eight extremely popular sports in Asia are in the program, plus up to 7 chosen by the local organization.^[49][50]

Sport Years Archery Since 1978 Athletics All Badminton Since 1962 Baseball Since 1994 Basketball All Board games 2006–2010, since 2022 Bodybuilding 2002–2006 Bowling 1978, 1986, since 1994 Boxing Since 1954 Canoeing Since 1986 Contract bridge 2018 only Cricket 2010–2014, Since 2022 Cue sports 1998–2010 Cycling 1951, since 1958 Dancesport 2010 only Dragon boat 2010, Since 2018 Diving All Equestrian 1982–1986, since 1994 Fencing 1974–1978, since 1986 Field hockey Since 1958 Football All Golf Since 1982 Gymnastics Since 1974 Handball Since 1982 Judo Since 1986 Jujitsu Since 2018 Kabaddi Since 1990

Sport Years Karate Since 1994 Kurash Since 2018 Modern pentathlon 1994, 2002, since 2010 Paragliding 2018 only Pencak silat 2018 only Roller sports 2010 and 2018 Rowing Since 1982 Rugby sevens Since 1998 Sailing 1970, since 1978 Sambo 2018 only Sepak takraw Since 1990 Shooting Since 1954 Sport climbing Since 2018 Softball since 1990 Soft tennis since 1990 Squash since 1998 Swimming All Synchronized swimming Since 1994 Table tennis 1958–1966, since 1974 Taekwondo 1986, since 1994 Tennis 1958–1966, since 1974 Triathlon Since 2006 Volleyball Since 1958 Water polo All Weightlifting 1951–1958, since 1966 Wrestling Since 1954 Wushu Since 1990

Disciplines

Sport	Disciplines	Years
Aquatics	Diving	All
	Swimming	All
	Synchronized Swimming	Since 1994
	Water polo	All
Baseball	Baseball	Since 1994
	Softball	Since 1990
Basketball	Basketball	All
	3x3 basketball	since 2018
Board games	Chess	2006–2010
	Go	2010
	Xiangqi	2010
Canoeing	Slalom canoeing	Since 2010
	Sprint canoeing	Since 1990
	Traditional boat race	2010, since 2018
Cycling	BMX racing	Since 2010
	Mountain biking	1998–2002, since 2010
	Road cycling	1951, since 1958
	Track cycling	1951, 1958, since 1966
Equestrian	Dressage	1986, since 1994
	Endurance	2006 only
	Eventing	1982–1986, since 1998
	Jumping	1982–1986, since 1994
	Tent pegging	1982 only
Gymnastics	Artistic gymnastics	Since 1974
	Rhythmic gymnastics	Since 1994
	Trampoline	Since 2006
Mechanical sports	Jetski	2018 only
Paragliding	Paragliding	2018 only
Roller sports	Artistic roller skating	2010 only
	Roller speed skating	2010, since 2018
	Skateboarding	since 2018
Rugby union	Rugby union	1998–2002
	Rugby sevens	Since 1998
Tennis	Tennis	1958–1966, since 1974
	Soft tennis	Since 1994
Volleyball	Volleyball	Since 1958
	Nine-a-side volleyball	1958–1962
	Beach volleyball	Since 1998
Wushu	Taolu	Since 1990
	Sanda	Men: Since 1998 Women: Since 2010

Medal count

Main article: All-time Asian Games medal table

Of the 46 National Olympic Committees participating throughout the history of the Games, 43 nations have won at least a single medal in the competition, leaving three nations: Bhutan, Maldives and Timor-Leste yet to win a single medal. 38 nations have won at least one gold medal (only Japan and India have done so at every Asian Games), while Japan and China became the only two nations in history to emerge as overall champions.^[51]

Rank	Nation	Gold	Silver	Bronze	Total
1	China (CHN)	1473	994	720	3187
2	Japan (JPN)	1032	1037	985	3054
3	South Korea (KOR)	745	663	827	2235
4	Iran (IRI)	179	181	197	557
5	India (IND)	155	201	316	672
6	Kazakhstan (KAZ)	155	158	244	557
7	Thailand (THA)	132	175	279	586
8	North Korea (PRK)	110	144	179	433
9	Chinese Taipei (TPE)	99	144	276	519
10	Indonesia (INA)	91	120	235	446
Totals (10 entries)		4171	3817	4258	12246

Most valuable player award

The most valuable player (MVP) award was introduced since 1998 Games in Bangkok, Thailand. Below is the list of winners:

Year	Athlete	NOC	Sport	Ref
1998	Koji Ito	Japan	Athletics	^[52]
2002	Kosuke Kitajima	Japan	Swimming	^[52]
2006	Park Tae-hwan	South Korea	Swimming	^[53]
2010	Lin Dan	China	Badminton	^[54]
2014	Kosuke Hagino	Japan	Swimming	^[55]
2018	Rikako Ikee	Japan	Swimming	^[56]

Centennial Festival

On 8 November 2012, the OCA decided at its 31st General Assembly in Macau to create a special multi-sport event called Asian Games Centennial Festival in celebration of the 100th anniversary of the Oriental Games (later became Far Eastern Championship Games).^[57] OCA awarded the Philippines the hosting rights as it was also the host 100 years previous. The event was originally scheduled to be held in Boracay, Malay, Aklan on 27 to 29 November 2013 but due to the events surrounding Typhoon Haiyan, it was moved to January 2014.^[58]

See also

•  Asia portal
•  Sports portal

• Asian Beach Games
• Asian Winter Games
• Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games
• Asian Youth Games

References

1. China's Great Leap: The Beijing Games and Olympian Human Rights Challenges. Seven Stories. 4 January 2011. p. 51. ISBN 9781583228432. Asian Games (also known as Asiad).
2. . OCA. Archived from the original on 22 May 2011. Retrieved 14 August 2010.
3. . Sports Biz Asia. 8 February 2010. Archived from the original on 27 November 2010. Retrieved 8 September 2010.
4. . Sports City. 22 July 2009. Archived from the original on 13 June 2010. Retrieved 8 September 2010.
5. . Olympic Council of Asia. Archived from the original on 26 February 2014. Retrieved 19 November 2014.
6. . wangchao.org. Archived from the original on 7 September 2013. Retrieved 14 August 2010.
7. "亚运会的前世今生：前身远东运动会 中国成绩优异". Sina. 4 August 2010. from the original on 2 December 2011. Retrieved 14 August 2010.
8. "Track: Asian Games Dropped By Olympics". Daytona Beach. 23 August 1962. Retrieved 14 August 2010.
9. . data.sports.163.com. Archived from the original on 3 July 2011. Retrieved 14 August 2010.
10. "Penalty Dealt to Indonesia". Spokane Daily Chronicles. 13 September 1962. Retrieved 14 August 2010.^{[permanent dead link]}
11. "Warning". The Age. 30 August 1962. Retrieved 14 August 2010.^{[permanent dead link]}
12. . Data.sports.163.com. Archived from the original on 3 July 2011. Retrieved 22 July 2010.
13. . Pattaya Mail Sports. Archived from the original on 17 June 2011. Retrieved 22 July 2010.
14. . data.sports.163. Archived from the original on 3 July 2011. Retrieved 9 October 2010.
15. . data.sports.163.com. Archived from the original on 3 July 2011. Retrieved 9 October 2010.
16. . Data.sports.163.com. Archived from the original on 3 July 2011. Retrieved 22 July 2010.
17. "Asian Games Federation says no to Israel". Anchorage Daily News. 3 June 1978. Retrieved 9 October 2010.^{[permanent dead link]}
18. "New Israeli rejection forces Asian athletes to risk Olympic hope". The Montreal Gazette. 22 November 1978. Retrieved 9 October 2010.
19. "Indonesia, Hong Kong protest ban on Israel". St. Petersburg Times. 4 December 1978. Retrieved 9 October 2010.^{[permanent dead link]}
20. "Israelis facing Asian ban". Ottawa Citizen. 10 December 1981. Retrieved 9 October 2010.
21. "Olympics". The Montreal Gazette. 28 November 1981. Retrieved 9 October 2010.
22. "China welcomes Taiwan's AG trip". Manila Standard. 16 July 1988. Retrieved 9 October 2010.
23. . data.sports.163.com. Archived from the original on 2 December 2010. Retrieved 9 October 2010.
24. "Let the Games Begin". New Straits Times. 3 October 1994. Retrieved 9 October 2010.^{[permanent dead link]}
25. "Asian Games ban Israel". St. Petersburg Times. 26 July 1976. Retrieved 29 July 2007.^{[permanent dead link]}
26. "Israel not invited to Asian Games". Lakeland Ledger. 26 May 1982. Retrieved 29 July 2007.^{[dead link]}
27. "No place for Australia in Asian Games". The Sydney Morning Herald. 17 April 2007. from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 29 July 2010.
28. Harper, Tony (21 February 2017). "Australia in discussions to take part in Asian Games from 2022". Fox Sports. Foxsports.com.au. from the original on 4 May 2017. Retrieved 6 August 2017.
29. "Oceania nations allowed small quota of athletes at 2022 Asian Games". The Indian Express. Indianexpress.com. Reuters. 21 September 2017. from the original on 24 September 2017. Retrieved 24 September 2017.
30. "1st AG New Delhi 1951". OCA. from the original on 11 September 2018. Retrieved 22 July 2010.
31. "2nd AG Manila 1954". OCA. from the original on 11 September 2018. Retrieved 22 July 2010.
32. "3rd AG Tokyo 1958". OCA. from the original on 11 September 2018. Retrieved 22 July 2010.
33. "4th AG Jakarta 1962". OCA. from the original on 11 September 2018. Retrieved 22 July 2010.
34. "5th AG Bangkok 1966". OCA. from the original on 11 September 2018. Retrieved 22 July 2010.
35. "6th AG Bangkok 1970". OCA. from the original on 11 September 2018. Retrieved 22 July 2010.
36. "7th AG Tehran 1974". OCA. from the original on 11 September 2018. Retrieved 22 July 2010.
37. "8th AG Bangkok 1978". OCA. from the original on 11 September 2018. Retrieved 22 July 2010.
38. "9th AG New Delhi 1982". OCA. from the original on 11 September 2018. Retrieved 22 July 2010.
39. "10th AG Seoul 1986". OCA. from the original on 11 September 2018. Retrieved 22 July 2010.
40. "11th AG Beijing 1990". OCA. from the original on 11 September 2018. Retrieved 22 July 2010.
41. "12th AG Hiroshima 1994". OCA. from the original on 11 September 2018. Retrieved 22 July 2010.
42. "13th AG Bangkok 1998". OCA. from the original on 11 September 2018. Retrieved 22 July 2010.
43. "14th AG Busan 2002". OCA. from the original on 11 September 2018. Retrieved 29 September 2002.
44. "15th AG Doha 2006". OCA. from the original on 11 September 2018. Retrieved 1 December 2006.
45. "16th AG Guangzhou 2010". OCA. from the original on 11 September 2018. Retrieved 22 November 2010.
46. "17th AG Incheon 2014". OCA. from the original on 11 September 2018. Retrieved 19 September 2014.
47. "18th AG Jakarta-Palembang 2018". OCA. from the original on 11 September 2018. Retrieved 20 September 2014.
48. "19th AG Hangzhou 2022". OCA. from the original on 11 September 2018. Retrieved 16 September 2015.
49. . Olympic Council of Asia. 13 November 2010. Archived from the original on 27 July 2011. Retrieved 14 November 2010.
50. . The Chosun Ilbo. 10 December 2010. Archived from the original on 29 September 2018. Retrieved 10 December 2010.
51. . Ocasia.org. Olympic Council of Asia. Archived from the original on 8 September 2018. Retrieved 26 August 2018.
52. "Outstanding Japanese athletes in Asian Games". gz2010.cn. 21 January 2010. from the original on 9 September 2017. Retrieved 8 May 2011.
53. "S Korean Swimmer Park Named MVP". China.org.cn. 16 December 2006. from the original on 20 February 2011. Retrieved 8 May 2011.
54. "Lin Dan voted Asian Games MVP". Jakarta Post. 28 November 2010. from the original on 1 January 2011. Retrieved 8 May 2011.
55. "Samsung MVP Award: 2014 MVP is Kosuke Hagino of Japan". The Korea Herald. 4 October 2014. from the original on 4 October 2014. Retrieved 4 October 2014.
56. "Teenage swimmer Ikee named 2018 Asian Games' "Most Valuable Player" as event draws to a close". inside the games. 2 September 2018. from the original on 2 September 2018. Retrieved 2 September 2018.
57. . OCA. Archived from the original on 8 January 2014. Retrieved 9 November 2012.
58. "Philippines to host 2013 Centennial Asian Games". Inquirer Sports. 20 July 2011. from the original on 19 June 2013. Retrieved 19 February 2013.

External links

 

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Asian Games.

• Olympic Council of Asia: Games