2025: The year Indian Sport turned a corner
Photo used for indicative purpose only
Rahul Bose, Mumbai/ Shimla, Dec 31,
Year 2025 emerged as a genuine inflection point for Indian sport — a period shaped not just by medals on the international stage, but by a visible shift towards systemic reform. A combination of increased government and private investments, bold policy interventions, and rapidly expanding infrastructure has begun laying the foundation for long-term sporting excellence.
The government’s approval of the National Sports Policy (NSP) 2025 has set India on a course aimed at consistent global competitiveness — especially as the country prepares to host the 2030 Commonwealth Games and pursues a bid for the 2036 Olympic Games. Supporting this vision, the newly enacted National Sports Governance Act, 2025 represents a decisive move from discretion to transparency in how sport is administered. For athletes, particularly those from smaller towns, fair selection processes, structured funding mechanisms, and assured grievance redressal are transformative reforms that build trust.
One of the most notable changes under the Act is the mandatory Safe Sports Policy to protect women, minors, and vulnerable athletes, along with a Code of Ethics aligned with international standards. The creation of a National Sports Board and dedicated Sports Tribunal, coupled with required athlete and women representation in all decision-making bodies, signals renewed fairness and accountability. These reforms are putting the athlete back at the centre of India’s sporting ecosystem.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has also shown personal interest by engaging directly with athletes — not just in formal ceremonies, but through conversations acknowledging their journeys, challenges, and triumphs.
And the triumphs have been many. India won its first-ever Squash World Cup, led by Joshna Chinappa, Abhay Singh and Anahat Singh. Indian women excelled globally — lifting the ICC Women’s World Cup 2025 and the Women’s Blind Cricket T20 World Cup. The country concluded its debut World Boxing Cup Finals with nine gold medals, while the Asian Youth Games saw India’s best-ever finish. The Men’s Hockey Team ended an eight-year drought by clinching the Asia Cup 2025. Rising stars like para-archer Sheetal Devi and chess champion Divya Deshmukh signaled the future.
What stands out most is the geographical spread of India’s sporting rise. The FIH Junior Hockey World Cup in Tamil Nadu, the Asian Aquatics Championship at the new Veer Savarkar Sports Complex in Ahmedabad, and major boxing and rugby events in Greater Noida and Bihar reflect new sporting centres of gravity.
Rugby’s progress particularly mirrors the national transformation. The launch of the Rugby Premier League in Mumbai — featuring franchise teams, star international talent, packed stands and live broadcasts — showed that emerging sports too can attract commercial viability. The ASMITA Women’s Rugby League has boosted participation among young women, strengthening pathways in a rapidly growing sport.
Policy reforms have pushed federations to modernise: mandating high-performance directors, earmarking 20% of budgets for grassroots and 10% for coach development, and supporting international prospects with diet allowances to ensure no athlete sacrifices nutrition while chasing medals.
Alongside competitive sport, the Fit India movement and its “Sundays on Cycle” initiative underline that sport must become a way of life — because a truly sporting nation is built bottom-up.
The direction is now clear. Performance + participation are the twin goals, Governance reforms provide long-term stability and Hosting global events accelerates ambition at every level.
India has set itself a bold target — to become a Top-10 sporting nation within a decade. The foundations are finally in place. The task now is to sustain momentum with discipline and belief.
(The Author is President, Rugby India and former international Rugby player)
About the Author
The HimachalScape Bureau comprises seasoned journalists from Himachal Pradesh with over 25 years of experience in leading media conglomerates such as The Times of India and United News of India. Known for their in-depth regional insights, the team brings credible, research-driven, and balanced reportage on Himachal’s socio-political and developmental landscape.