Asian Games Federation
| Abbreviation | AGF |
|---|---|
| Motto | Ever onward |
| Successor | Olympic Council of Asia |
| Formation | 13 February 1949 |
| Extinction | 26 November 1981 |
| Type | Sports federation |
| Purpose | Organizing the Asian Games |
|
Region served
|
Asia |
|
Membership
|
Asian National Olympic Committees |
The Asian Games Federation (AGF) was the governing body of sports in Asia from 1949 to 1981. The federation was disbanded on 26 November 1981, in New Delhi and replaced by the Olympic Council of Asia. The AGF was responsible for the organisation of the Asian Games from 1951 to 1978. The Federation was established on 13 February 1949, in a meeting held in Patiala House in New Delhi.
In March 1947, Jawaharlal Nehru, who later became the first prime minister of India, held the Asian Relations Conference in New Delhi—a meeting with a prospect to bring the possibility of Asian Games under the attention of participating countries. Before the conference, Guru Dutt Sondhi, who was the member of the International Olympic Committee for India, encouraged Yadavindra Singh, Maharaja of Patiala and the then-president of the Indian Olympic Association (IOA), to communicate with meeting attendees to establish the Asian Games Federation. The proposal was not acknowledged by some representatives and the rest, who approved, refused to make any commitment.
In July 1947, the IOA, which initially was advocating the organisation of Games, retracted its patronage for unknown reasons. Sondhi found an alternative; rather than organising a multi-sport event, for which he needed an approval of the IOA, he opted for a single event championship titled the Asian Athletic Championships—a track and field event. Sondhi, who was also the president of the Amateur Athletic Federation of India (AAFI) (now Athletics Federation of India), received the consent of federation in February 1948. Yadavindra, on the request of Sondhi, became the president of the organising committee for the Championship, and Sondhi took the position of chairman. In early July, formal invitations were sent to various Asian countries, backed by the letter from the AAFI. But the response was not positive as there was a scheduling conflict with the 1948 Summer Olympics, which were scheduled from 29 July.
...
Wikipedia