Rupinder SinghNew Delhi, March 22 -- India's long quest for sporting legitimacy on the global stage took a decisive step forward this week, when World Athletics awarded the 2028 World Athletics Indoor Championships to Bhubaneswar - a decision that signals both recognition and expectation.
The announcement, made by World Athletics president Sebastian Coe on the eve of the 2024 indoor championships in Gliwice, Poland, places India in rarefied company. It is not merely about hosting another international event; it is about validating a trajectory that Indian athletics has been attempting to chart for over a decade.
From Peripheral Host to Strategic PlayerFor much of the late 20th century, India flirted with global athletics without fully emb...