NAGOYA, Japan, Oct. 1 (Xinhua) -- The Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games will likely be followed by an unusually long five-year wait before the next edition in Doha in 2031, as the Games are expected to shift from their traditional schedule two years before the Olympics to the year immediately preceding them.
Ahmad Abdulla Al-Buenain, CEO of the Doha 2030 Asian Games Organizing Committee, said no final decision on timing has been made. "To be honest, it's a little bit early to decide. We are already in discussion with the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA); Qatar is ready to host it at any time of year, but we also need to consider the sports calendar," he said.
The possible calendar change has already caught athletes' attention; Chinese table tennis star Sun Yingsha said, "Five years is a bit long. I might not be able to wait that long."
The longer gap is not just a timetable change; it is part of a wider effort to reinforce the Asian Games' role within the Olympic framework while tackling rising concerns about participation levels, event size and long-term sustainability.
BRINGING ASIAN GAMES CLOSER TO THE OLYMPICS
The Asian Games are usually held two years before the Olympics, often falling between key stages of athletes' preparation; moreover, most events do not count toward Olympic qualification, which lowers the incentive for top athletes and teams to compete.
The Aichi-Nagoya Games feature 43 sports and 469 events. Of those, 329 events are on the Olympic program (70.1% of the total), yet only 16 events - including archery, triathlon, surfing, tennis, squash and hockey - allocate some Olympic qualification places via the Asian Games.
The effect is particularly clear in team sports. Japan has been without several leading players in basketball and volleyball, while other Asian teams have also rested key athletes.
Moving the Games to the year before the Olympics could change that calculus. If more events become Olympic qualifiers, the Asian Games would have a stronger pull for elite athletes, potentially raising the sporting level while boosting the Games' commercial value and global profile.
"Other continents basically hold their continental multi-sport games in the year before the Olympics," said Li Lingwei, an International Olympic Committee Executive Board member. "On balance, I think the benefits outweigh the drawbacks."
Song Luzeng, vice president of the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA), told Xinhua that most international sports federations have supported the calendar change. But whether specific Asian Games events can become Olympic qualifiers still needs to be worked out.
"Each sport has its own Olympic qualification system. Football, for example, has its own system, so it is difficult to say whether the Asian Games can become part of its qualification pathway," Song said.
That means the OCA must coordinate with more than 30 international federations on qualification rules, quotas and competition calendars.
Participation rules and commercial rights add to the complexity. The Asian Games traditionally operate on an open-entry basis, while Olympic qualification events require clearly defined standards and field sizes. Meanwhile, qualification events are generally developed and marketed by international federations, raising questions over the allocation of commercial rights and revenues.
The reform therefore involves much more than moving the Games on the calendar.
IOC President Kirsty Coventry has nevertheless backed the direction, calling it "a great way forward" that would help strengthen the Olympic movement. She said she looked forward to the OCA and the Asian Games making further progress.
MORE THAN A CALENDAR CHANGE
The five-year gap is an immediate consequence of the transition. For some veteran athletes, staying at their peak through Doha 2031 may prove difficult, but at the same time, a closer alignment with the Olympic calendar could benefit athletes.
Chinese shooting coaches and athletes said the Asian Games provide a multi-sport competition environment that differs significantly from world championships and World Cups. Olympic champion diver0 Chen Yiwen described the Games as a rare opportunity to simulate the overall experience of a multi-sport event during the Olympic cycle.
The closer timing, however, could also increase pressure, as performances would attract greater attention and expectations.
Beyond the calendar, the OCA faces a more fundamental question: how big should the Asian Games be?
The Aichi-Nagoya Games feature 43 sports, compared with 32 at the Paris Olympics. The expansive program reflects Asia's sporting diversity, but it also makes the Games increasingly costly and difficult to host.
Japanese media reported that Nagoya's initial bid budget was about 85 billion yen (about 540 million U.S. dollars), but the figure had risen to around 240 billion yen before the Games. More than 17,000 people were eventually registered, prompting organizers to turn to a cruise ship and container-style accommodation to ease the pressure on lodging.
"With the scale of this edition, it would be genuinely difficult for an ordinary city to host the Asian Games," Song said.
The challenge of keeping the Games sustainable is already shaping preparations for Doha. Al‑Buenain said Qatar plans to make full use of existing sports infrastructure, with no new competition venues needed for the Games.
"Everyone agrees that sustainability means utilizing whatever infrastructure exists, making sure it is up to standard and fulfills the needs," he said, adding that the number of sports and disciplines should be decided jointly by the OCA, international federations and the organizing committee.
Qatar's approach offers one possible answer to the rising cost of hosting major multi-sport events: rather than continually expanding infrastructure, future hosts could focus on making better use of what they already have.
The OCA thus faces a difficult balancing act: keeping the Games broad enough to reflect Asia's sporting diversity while making them affordable and sustainable enough for more cities to host.
Some have suggested moving certain sports to other OCA multi-sport events. But few sports are willing to give up their places at the Asian Games, whose visibility and resources remain difficult to match elsewhere.
"Reform inevitably means that some sports will benefit more while others may lose out," Li said. "But in the long run, we should set the sports program and competition cycle from the perspective of greater sustainability."
The shortage of potential hosts adds urgency to the debate. "Few cities can host the Asian Games now, and not many are willing to do so," Song said.
After 75 years, the question is no longer simply how to stage the Asian Games, but how to keep them relevant, competitive and sustainable in a new era. ■
