When the city of Chengdu in China lights the ceremonial flame on August 7, 2025, it will signal more than just the start of another multi-sport event The World Games 2025.
The 12th edition of The World Games set to bring together around 5,000 athletes from 118 nations across 34 sports promises to redefine what non-Olympic sport can mean in the 21st century. For India, a country whose sporting ambitions have grown exponentially over the past decade, Chengdu 2025 may be more than just a date on the calendar; it could represent a crucial moment to rethink and revitalize its approach to disciplines beyond the Olympic spotlight.
A Festival of Non-Olympic Excellence
For those unfamiliar, The World Games is an international multi-sport event that celebrates sports and disciplines not featured in the Olympic Games. This year’s edition, themed “Boundless Sports, Countless Wonders,” carries a special mission: to broaden participation, deepen inclusivity, and embrace sustainability. From cheerleading to finswimming, drone sports to wushu, the event captures the imagination by offering platforms to sports and athletes who otherwise might be overshadowed by the Olympic glare.
Chengdu’s edition is especially significant because it is the first to implement the ambitious “Growth Beyond Excellence” strategy. The number of permitted participants has risen from 4,200 to 5,000, including 200 para-athletes in non-Paralympic sports a bold commitment to inclusivity rarely seen on this scale. At the same time, there’s a commitment to avoid new, costly venues: existing sports infrastructure across Chengdu will be adapted, reflecting a modern approach that prioritizes sustainability over spectacle.
India’s Story So Far: Moments of Glory, Periods of Silence
India’s history at The World Games over the last three editions offers a microcosm of its sporting journey: flashes of brilliance balanced by gaps that show untapped potential. In 2013, at Cali, Colombia, the country achieved its best-ever result: a gold in snooker by Aditya Mehta and a silver in wushu through Pooja Kandian. But the momentum stalled: in 2017 at Wroclaw, Poland, the contingent of five athletes returned without a medal. A small recovery came in 2022 at Birmingham, USA, when archers Jyothi Surekha Vennam and Abhishek Verma clinched bronze in the mixed compound team event.
Beyond the medal table, what stands out is the concentration of India’s success in a handful of disciplines: archery, billiards/snooker, and occasionally wushu. It hints at a deeper reality: India’s performance at The World Games has so far been built on exceptional individuals rather than systematic, targeted planning.
Why The World Games Matter Even If They Aren’t the Olympics
It’s tempting to see The World Games as secondary to the Olympics, but for many athletes and sports, this event represents the pinnacle of achievement. Disciplines like cue sports, racquetball, and roller sports may never be part of the Olympic programme, yet they thrive on passionate communities and remarkable athletes.
For India, these sports offer not only new medal opportunities but also pathways to engage a younger, more diverse audience. In a nation of over a billion, where cricket still dominates headlines, success in non-Olympic disciplines can help broaden the sporting conversation and challenge stereotypes about what sports “matter.” Moreover, sports like archery and wushu are deeply rooted in Indian cultural traditions, suggesting a natural synergy between heritage and modern high-performance sport.
Looking Ahead: Chengdu 2025 and India’s Bigger Bet
Encouragingly, signs suggest India is preparing to turn the page. For Chengdu 2025, India plans to send its largest-ever World Games contingent: 17 athletes (10 men and 7 women) competing across five sports archery, billiards, racquetball, speed skating, and wushu.
This increase from the 10 athletes who participated in 2013 and 2022 (and the mere five in 2017) reflects a shift from token representation to a more strategic presence. Crucially, it’s not about spreading thinly across many sports; instead, it’s a focused expansion in disciplines where India has either historical strength or emerging talent.
New faces like Kosetty Jyotheekalyan and Shilpa Dalvi in racquetball join established athletes in archery and billiards, suggesting a blend of continuity and bold experimentation.
The National Sports Machine: Indirect Benefits for World Games Sports
While India’s flagship sports programme such as Khelo India, Target Olympic Podium Scheme (TOPS), and the broader mission under the AIFF’s Vision 2047 are mostly aimed at Olympic sports, their impact may spill over. Increased funding (₹3,794 crores allocated in FY 2025–26), upgraded sports infrastructure, and data-driven talent identification benefit the overall ecosystem.
As thousands of athletes across 27 sports enter Khelo India competitions, some inevitably find their way into non-Olympic disciplines too. The challenge, however, remains: these programme are not explicitly designed to target The World Games. Without direct investment, India’s performance may remain reliant on exceptional talent rather than structured depth.
India’s medal tally in previous editions underscores a key issue: inconsistency. After the high of 2013, there was a medal drought in 2017, and then just a single bronze in 2022. The average contingent size remains small relative to the nearly 5,000 athletes at the Games. The imbalance also shows in discipline choice: while archery and billiards receive sustained attention, other sports fade in and out based on individual athlete presence rather than federation strategy. It reflects the larger problem non-Olympic sports often lack dedicated funding, scientific support, and grassroots pipelines.
What Can Change This? Strategic Recommendations
1.Focused investment in proven disciplines: Instead of chasing breadth, India should deepen investment in sports where medals are realistic archery, billiards, and wushu. Regular camps, international exposure, and sports science support can turn individual brilliance into a pipeline.
2.Data-driven talent identification: Using analytics to study global trends, athlete performance curves, and past World Games results can guide smarter selection and preparation.
3.Strategic expansion: Rather than randomly entering new sports, India should evaluate where there’s a competitive gap to exploit like para-disciplines or newer sports included under the “Growth Beyond Excellence” strategy.
4.Raise public and corporate interest: Media campaigns and school outreach can boost grassroots participation in sports like cue sports or racquetball, attracting sponsors and sustaining athlete careers.
5.International collaboration: Joint training camps with nations that excel in niche disciplines can bring coaching knowledge and sparring opportunities that local systems may lack.
Beyond Medals: Why The World Games Deserve India’s Attention
As Chengdu 2025 approaches, India must see The World Games not as an afterthought but as part of a larger sporting vision. Winning medals matters, but equally important is what these medals symbolize: the rise of diverse sports cultures, the breaking of gender stereotypes, and the message that in India, sport is for everyone.
By reimagining its approach to The World Games, India has an opportunity to go beyond traditional definitions of sporting success. It’s a chance to discover new champions, engage new fans, and tell new stories stories that don’t just belong on the Olympic podium, but across every field, mat, and table where Indian athletes compete.
In Chengdu, the Games’ motto speaks of “Boundless Sports, Countless Wonders.” For Indian sport, embracing that vision could mean writing its most unexpected and inclusive sporting chapter yet.
