Oleg Matytsin, the head of the Russian Ministry of Sport, floated the idea of hosting the first SCO Games in Russia. This came during discussions highlighted by Match TV, referencing the ministry’s press service.
Matytsin shared this proposal at a gathering in Delhi where officials responsible for sports development from SCO member nations—Russia, India, Kazakhstan, China, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan—convened to discuss shared interests and collaboration in physical culture and sport.
He suggested that, for the upcoming calendar period, Russia should be considered a potential host country for the SCO Games, with the arrangement aligned to the SCO presidency framework.
Earlier, in September 2022, President Vladimir Putin proposed the creation of sports bodies under the umbrella of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, signaling a broader push to integrate sports into regional collaboration.
Putin emphasized the need to deepen cultural and humanitarian ties within the SCO and to explore opportunities to intensify sports cooperation. He noted the potential to organize major events under SCO auspices and proposed examining the formation of a dedicated sports organizations association within the broader SCO framework.
In January, the International Olympic Committee signaled it was reviewing the possibility of allowing athletes from Russia and Belarus to compete internationally, despite earlier calls to exclude participants from those countries from global events. The IOC stance did not endorse any military action and remained focused on the broader context of international sport and governance.
Rumors circulated about the potential reentry of the Russian team into international tournaments in 2024, with Luc Tardif, a former president of the International Ice Hockey Federation, among those who sparked discussion about possible admissions and participation at the highest levels of competition.