Performers forming the Olympic rings at the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics.
IN PHOTO: Performers form the Olympic rings during a show at the closing ceremony for the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics, February 23, 2014. REUTERS/Eric Gaillard

India’s hopes of hosting the 2024 Olympics have been quashed by the chairman of the International Olympic Committee, or IOC, Thomas Bach, who has claimed it is too early for the country to be hosting an event of such magnitude. Various media reports, including by Times of India, had earlier claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi was interested in bringing the event to India.

The IOC has already called for bids for the 2024 Games, with the deadline to submit applications being Sep. 15, 2015. Brazil is hosting the next Olympics in 2016 in Rio de Janerio, while Tokyo, Japan will host the event in 2020. Boston (United States), Nairobi (Kenya), Casablanca (Morocco), Paris (France) and St. Petersburg (Russia) are some of the cities bidding for the 2024 Olympics. India’s host city would have been Ahmedabad, in the Prime Minister’s home state of Gujarat, according to the media reports.

Bach was in India for a day long trip and met the Prime Minister on Monday. He signed a Memorandum of Understanding which will see the IOC work with the Indian Olympic Association and the Central government to support the Indian sporting community. PM Modi and Sports Minister Sarbananda Sonowal then reportedly discussed with Bach the possibility of India hosting the 2024 Games.

“We are very happy to see that the Prime Minister is sharing his opinion and he is seriously looking into an Olympic candidature but wants to have it well prepared and wants to have all the expertise of sport, the Government and the civil society (together). Therefore he also considers building such successful candidature from now to September 15 (the last date to submit bids) maybe a little bit difficult. So we will stay in contact for the future, but for 2024 we share the same opinion,” Bach said at a press conference, as per The Hindu.

India hosted the 2010 Commonwealth Games, but only amongst claims of large-scale corruption and delays in building stadiums and other facilities, which has left citizens and government officials alike touchy about the idea of hosting another event of such a huge scale.

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