141st IOC Session: Focus on Mumbai, a city of dreams ripe with Olympic spirit
The 141st IOC Session will be held in Mumbai, India. Here’s a dive into the city’s rich connection with sports and the Olympics.
From October 15 to 17, the collective attention of the sporting world will be on Mumbai, as the 141st IOC Session unfolds at the City of Dreams.
The IOC Session, held at least once every year, is the general meeting of the members of the International Olympic Committee (IOC). Important decisions regarding host cities for upcoming events, inclusion or exclusion of sports and federations and changes in the Olympic Charter are made at the IOC Sessions. These sessions are the IOC’s supreme organ and decisions made at these meetings are final.
A total of 140 IOC Sessions have been conducted since 1894 but the upcoming one in Mumbai will see India hosting the prestigious meeting for only the second time. New Delhi, back in 1983, hosted the first.
Given Mumbai’s intrinsic connection to Indian sports and the country’s Olympic history, the port city promises to be the perfect stage for yet another ground-breaking IOC session.
Mumbai and sports: Where history meets spirit
Mumbai, previously known as Bombay, is India’s financial hub and the home to the country’s globally renowned Hindi film industry - Bollywood. The commercial draw of the city has earned Mumbai its moniker, the City of Dreams.
Over the years, Mumbai has transformed into a melting point of cultures from all across the country giving it a unique identity - a true metropolitan where everyone is welcome. Millions throng to Mumbai every year to give shape to their dreams and aspirations. The city, too, has a big enough heart to make everyone its own.
Of the innumerable threads of dreams which have been woven into reality in Mumbai, several have been on the sporting front and any reference to sports in the city probably begins with cricket.
Mumbai: Cricket’s heartbeat
If cricket was a religion, which it is in India, the Wankhede Stadium at the end of Mumbai’s popular Marine Drive, is probably its holiest pilgrimage.
The iconic Shivaji Park in Dadar, a rich patch of green right in the heart of the city full of highrises, meanwhile, is often considered the nursery of Indian cricket, where thousands of youngsters come to chase their dreams with the bat and the ball. World cricket icons like Sachin Tendulkar and Sunil Gavaskar hail from Mumbai.
Cricket, though, isn’t the only dish in Mumbai’s rich sporting platter.
The Shivaji Park in Mumbai has been a nursery for young cricketers in India.
Olympics and Mumbai
Wrestler KD Jadhav, who won bronze at Helsinki 1952 to become India’s first individual Olympic medallist post-independence, was born in Maharashtra’s Satara back in 1926. It was part of the erstwhile Bombay Presidency under the British Raj. Satara is located around 250kms from the city of Mumbai we know today.
Even Kolkata-born tennis legend Leander Paes, who won a historic bronze at Atlanta 1996 to mark India's first individual medal at the Olympics since KD Jadhav’s exploits in Helsinki, shares a long-standing connection with Mumbai and has called the city his home for many years.
Mumbai has also been a great pipeline for Indian hockey over the years, producing several notable players, including eminent Olympic medallists, along the way.
Celebrated hockey stars like Leo Pinto, Walter D’ Souza, Kulwant Singh Arora, Gurbax and Balbir Singh Grewal, MM Somaya, MK Kaushik, Mir Ranjan Negi, Dhanraj Pillay, Darryl D’Souza, Adrian D’Souza, Viren Rasquinha and Devinder Walmiki have come up from Mumbai. While some were born and raised in the city, others spent a chunk of their domestic playing careers in Mumbai.
Mumbai has been a big contributor to Indian hockey over the years.
Mir Ranjan Negi, who later coached the Indian women’s hockey team to a gold medal at the Commonwealth Games 2002, inspired the superhit Shahrukh Khan-starrer Chak De! India - one of Bollywood’s most famous sports movies.
The city of Mumbai has always been known for its forward-thinking nature and perhaps one of the most notable examples of the trait came in 1952, when India sent their first-ever women’s contingent for the Olympics.
Of the four Indian women who competed at Helsinki 1952, two - Mary D’Souza and Dolly Nazir - had roots in the erstwhile Bombay. While Dolly grew up in Carmichael Road, not very far from the famous Haji Ali Dargah, Mary graduated from the St Joseph’s Convent School in Bandra’s Hill Road - a stone's throw away from the city’s famous St Andrew’s church and Mehboob Studios.
Of late, Mumbai has also emerged at the forefront of a new era of franchise-based sports leagues. Mumbai Indians, the most successful team in the Indian Premier League (IPL) cricket competition, calls the city its home while Mumbai City FC, former Indian Super League (ISL) football champions and U Mumba, Pro Kabaddi League (PKL) season 2 winners, are also based out of Mumbai.
A guide for tourists in Mumbai
A trip to the magnificent city is incomplete without visiting its historic landmarks like the Gateway of India, Churchgate and Maratha Mandir, where the blockbuster Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge has been running since its release in 1995. Shopping at Colaba Causeway and an evening on the bustling Juhu beach also comes highly recommended.
The Marine Drive, also called the Queen’s Necklace, is one of the most popular tourist spots in Mumbai.
Other prominent tourist attractions include the Marine Drive (also called the Queen’s Necklace), Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus and the Elephanta Caves - both UNESCO World Heritage Sites, the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya (formerly Prince of Wales Museum), the Sanjay Gandhi National Park and the famous Siddhivinayak Temple.
The city also offers a diverse range of cuisines - from famous Irani cafes, often located on street corners, to the upscale restaurants in and around Kamala Mills.
Mumbai is also famous for its wide array of street foods. Do try out the traditional Vada Pav, Misal Pav, Pav Bhaji and Dabeli. Its proximity to the sea also makes it a heaven for seafood lovers and the local Malvani cuisine offers plenty of that with a regional twist.
If you have a sweet tooth, street desserts like jalebi, falooda, kulfi and various mithais are readily available throughout the city.