Where in India was the first Asian Games organised?

Concept

The Asian Games is a continental multi-sport event organised by the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) for athletes from across Asia, held once every four years, modelled on the Olympic Games but restricted to Asian nations.

Application

The inaugural edition, officially the 1951 Asian Games, was hosted in New Delhi from 4 to 11 March 1951, featuring 489 athletes from 11 countries competing across 6 sports. New Delhi was chosen as the venue because it was the capital of newly independent India, marking the country's emergence on the international sporting stage.

Cross-check: contrast with the other options

• Calcutta: a major sporting and cultural hub of eastern India, but never the host city for this first edition.

• Chennai (then Madras): a long-standing centre of Indian sport, but not the venue for this event.

• Mumbai (then Bombay): India's commercial capital, but not where this first edition was organised.

Records from the Olympic Council of Asia and the Indian Olympic Association confirm New Delhi as the host city of this first edition; India hosted the Asian Games again, also in New Delhi, in 1982.