The Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) has derecognised the Indian-origin sport Kho Kho. The General Assembly said on Saturday that the Asian Kho Kho Federation’s temporary recognition had been revoked in response to a request by the OCA Executive Board and that two new sports, dodgeball and jump rope, had been granted provisional status.
Song Luzeng, Chair of the OCA Sports Committee, said that kho kho was being derecognised because the Asian kho kho federation was dragging its feet on complying with OCA requirements, despite provisional recognition being granted in 2018 during the Jakarta Asian Games General Assembly.
“Over six years has passed and the Asian Kho Kho Federation has not informed the OCA of any of their achievements. We wrote to them and asked them to submit a report, but they have failed to do so. The OCA provides recognition in order for a sport to grow and develop, but we have not received any feedback from Kho Kho,” Song said.
Kho Kho is currently played by 25 countries across the globe. The Asian Kho Kho Federation was founded in 1987 and includes India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Nepal and Maldives. In 1982, Kho-Kho was incorporated into the Indian Olympic Association and in 1989 a show was held during the ‘Asian Games’ Festival.
One of the Kho Kho federation’s next goals was to be a part of the Asian Games schedule. There have already been four Asian Kho Kho championships, held in India (1996, 2016), Bangladesh (2000), and India (2023).