‘France has noted how sports have been playing an increasingly important role in Indian society and economy’
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The 2024 Paris Olympic and Paralympic Games were extraordinary organisational, popular and sporting successes, and hailed as such worldwide. The stunning venues and ceremonies in the heart of the city of love and across France, the memorable prowess of the athletes, and the unbridled enthusiasm throughout the country thrilled spectators and television viewers around the world. The Games built bridges and brought people together — which is all the more important in the current geopolitical context.
France is grateful that India fully participated in the festivities and contributed to the success of the Games. The Indian Paralympic delegation made a record-breaking performance in Paris, reaching the 18th position in the medals tally. Further, under an international cooperation framework, India sent K9 teams (canine) abroad for the first time to patrol various Olympic venues, reinforcing France’s meticulously-planned security arrangements. The first Indian hospitality centre in the Games’ history, India House, was set up during the 2024 Olympics and opened to visitors strolling through the iconic “Nations Park”.
Expertise that will be shared
Paris 2024 was also the most sustainable and inclusive Games. It reduced the carbon footprint of the Games by 54.6% when compared with the average for the London 2012 and Rio 2016 Games, setting new standards for international sporting events and their impact on the people. It made history by achieving gender parity with the equal participation of male and female athletes, and invested massively to make the Games accessible for spectators with disabilities. These achievements were made possible by bold and innovative approaches and the great collective effort of France’s central and regional governments, the Olympic Organising Committee, various sports movements and sponsoring companies. France has developed very special and comprehensive expertise that it now aims to share with its partners under its sports diplomacy. This is one of the main objectives of my visit to India.
India’s Olympic bid
France has also noted how sports have been playing an increasingly important role in Indian society and economy, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi recently upholding sports as an “essential aspect in the development of the country”. Besides India’s 2036 Games bid and, more broadly, the organisation of international sporting events, the Indian authorities and sports movements are proactively developing sporting practices and focusing on improving performance, as recently demonstrated by the decision to establish 10 Olympic training centres across the nation.
Sports are hence another area of cooperation with promising prospects. Mutual interest in deepening exchanges have been expressed at the highest levels: President Emmanuel Macron and Mr. Modi highlighted this during the French President’s visit to India in January 2024 and more recently, Mr. Modi’s visit to France in February 2025.
In July 2023, a joint declaration of intent on sports was concluded between our respective sports ministries to increase exchanges between sports delegations and federations, economic actors of the sports industry, and experts of international sporting events. In January 2024, the India-France Joint Statement welcomed the strengthening of sports cooperation and reaffirmed that France would share its experience of hosting the Paris 2024 Games with India as it bids to host the 2036 Games.
Against this backdrop, my mission in Delhi and Chennai as Ambassador-at-Large for Sport aims to enhance France’s understanding of India’s sports ecosystem and meet its various institutional and economical players to deepen already identified areas of cooperation and explore new ones.
The sharing of expertise in organising major international sporting events, as well as their long-term social and environmental legacy, has already begun. Institutional exchanges have been taking place, with several delegations from India’s Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports having visited France in September 2024 during the Paralympic Games. As India’s 2036 project takes shape, my visit will help identify India’s needs more precisely, so that our dialogue can advance in line with India’s targeted priorities.
A vibrant industry that has much to offer
The medium-term idea is also to bring new players to the table, particularly economic ones. The French sports industry is particularly dynamic: in 2023, it generated a turnover of €75 billion (₹6.7 lakh crore approximately at that time), which is much higher, for example, than that of the aerospace industry (€65 billion). With around 1,28,000 companies of all sizes, its offering is diverse, ranging from construction, major equipment, data analysis, to ticketing and consumer experience. While some of these companies, such as Decathlon, are already household names in the Indian market, many are looking to expand here soon. We are also seeing promising new partnerships, including the recent one between Tata Consultancy Services and Amaury Sport Organisation for the Paris Marathon.
Lastly, enhancing exchanges between our two countries’ sports movements and professionals — such as athletes or coaches — is a constant priority for France’s sports diplomacy, the main goal being to boost youth exchanges with India. In this regard, one of the most recent success stories is that of the Indian and French surfing federations, which signed a cooperation agreement last November, under which four Indians under 21 years of age were invited to participate in an international competition in Reunion Island, a French overseas territory in the Indian Ocean.
Samuel Ducroquet is France’s Ambassador-at-Large for Sport
Published – April 14, 2025 12:08 am IST