Asiad gold-winning former shot-putter Bahadur Singh Sagoo elected AFI president

Chandigarh: Asian Games gold-winning former shot putter Bahadur Singh Sagoo was on Tuesday elected unopposed as the Athletics Federation of India's president, succeeding the long-serving Adille Sumariwalla in the top position.

The 51-year-old Sagoo, who will serving a four-year term, won a shot put gold in the 2002 Busan Asian Games and also took part in the 2000 and 2004 Olympics. He is a member of the AFI Athletes Commission.

Sagoo was the lone candidate left in fray after incumbent senior vice president Anju Bobby George opted out of the race for the position.

His election was formalised at the two-day Annual General Meeting of the AFI.

Sagoo had won the men's shot put gold with a throw of 19.03m. He has a lifetime best of 20.40m, and is also a Padma Shri recipient.

There were no elections for the remaining posts, a repeat of what happened during the last AGM in 2020.

Delhi unit's top official Sandeep Mehta was elected unopposed as the AFI secretary. He was the senior joint secretary in the outgoing executive council. Stanely Jones was made the treasurer.

The 67-year-old Sumariwalla has been the AFI president since 2012 and was not eligible to contest elections this time under the existing National Sports Code.

During his tenure, Neeraj Chopra won a historic gold in the Tokyo Olympics followed by a silver in the Paris Games.

Sumariwalla is currently a member of the powerful executive board of World Athletics.