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OCA — Olympic Council of Asia

The continental association of the 45 National Olympic Committees of Asia, formed by decision of the Asian Games Federation in New Delhi in November 1981 and seated in Kuwait City; it owns the Asian Games and four other Games.
✓ Last reviewed: September 2026
Decision to form26 November 1981, New Delhi, at an Asian Games Federation Council meeting
Constitution in forceNovember 1982
IOC recognition1983, per the OCA Constitution
Permanent seatKuwait City, Kuwait (Constitution, Article 5.3)
Games it ownsAsian Games; Asian Winter Games; Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games; Asian Youth Games; Asian Beach Games
Members45 National Olympic Committees
PresidentSheikh Joaan bin Hamad Al Thani (Qatar), elected 26 January 2026
Next Asian GamesAichi-Nagoya, 19 September - 4 October 2026 (20th edition)

What is the OCA?

The Olympic Council of Asia is the continental association of the National Olympic Committees of Asia. Its Constitution states the position in one line at Article 1.1: "the OCA is the continental association of the National Olympic Committees of Asia and has jurisdiction over all OCA Games, all OCA activities, and the use of all OCA Properties".[1]

Article 5.2 gives its legal character: "an independent international non-governmental not-for-profit International Asian Sport organization in the form of an association with the status of a legal person of unlimited duration, recognized by the IOC".[1] Forty-five NOCs are members.[2]

It owns more multi-sport Games than any other continental association — five separate celebrations under Article 37 — which makes it the body most often named in Asian competition records. The Asian Games are the largest of them.[1] Its own stated domain ocasia.org does not resolve; the working official site is oca.asia.[8]

What does the OCA govern or do?

The Constitution vests the Games in the body absolutely. Article 37.5 provides that "all OCA Games are the exclusive property of the OCA", which owns all rights and data relating to their organisation, promotion, exploitation and reproduction; Article 37.4 makes the Executive Board "the authority of last resort on any question concerning the OCA Games", including the power to create new competitions.[1]

Entry runs through the members: under Article 37.1 "the OCA Members have the sole responsibility to select, register and ensure the participation in the OCA Games", and competitions are conducted under the international federations' technical rules, or where no IF exists under the rules of the competent Asian federation subject to OCA supervision.[1]

The OCA has delegated its clean-sport operations. The International Testing Agency states that "the Olympic Council of Asia entrusts the ITA with clean sport activities" for its major events, covering results management and sanction notification at Games including Hangzhou 2023 and the 2026 Asian Beach Games in Sanya.[6] That makes the OCA a body whose anti-doping function sits outside it.

When was the OCA founded and where is it based?

The Constitution separates three dates cleanly. "A decision to form the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) was taken in New Delhi at the AGF Council meeting held on the 26th of November 1981"; the first edition of the OCA Constitution was approved at that meeting and "came into force in November 1982"; and "the OCA has been recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in 1983".[1]

The predecessor was the Asian Games Federation, formed in New Delhi and running the Asian Games from 1951. The OCA's own council page records that the permanent headquarters moved to Kuwait in 1982, having previously been in New Delhi since the Asian Games Federation's formation in 1949.[2] Article 5.3 of the Constitution fixes the position: "the permanent seat of OCA is in Kuwait City (Kuwait)"; the postal address is P.O. Box 6706 Hawalli, Zip Code 32042.[1] [7]

Sheikh Joaan bin Hamad Al Thani of Qatar was elected the 22nd OCA President at a General Assembly in Tashkent on 26 January 2026, serving the remainder of the term after Randhir Singh stood down on health grounds; 45 Asian NOCs attended.[3]

How is the OCA recognised?

Both instruments say the same thing. Olympic Charter Rule 3.2 provides that the IOC "may also recognise associations of NOCs formed at continental or world level", that they "must comply with the Olympic Charter" and that "their statutes are subject to the approval of the IOC"; the Charter's table of abbreviations lists OCA as "Olympic Council of Asia".[5]

The OCA Constitution accepts that subordination expressly. Article 1.3: "the OCA, an organization belonging to the Olympic Movement, must respect the provisions of the Olympic Charter and the World Anti-Doping Code and must abide by the decisions of the IOC." Article 1.5 adds that the Constitution "shall always conform to the Olympic Charter", and the definitions section describes it as "the Constitution of OCA adopted by General Assembly and approved by IOC".[1]

Members are bound in the same chain: Article 1.6 binds members, officials, athletes and coaches to the Olympic Charter, the Constitution and any final decision of the IOC, the OCA and the Court of Arbitration for Sport.[1]

What does the OCA organise?

Article 37.2 of the Constitution lists five celebrations: the Asian Games, numbered consecutively every four years from New Delhi 1951; the Asian Winter Games, from Sapporo 1986; the Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games, from Bangkok 2005; the Asian Youth Games, from Singapore 2009; and the Asian Beach Games, every two years from Bali 2008.[1]

The 20th Asian Games open in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan on 19 September 2026 and run to 4 October, with 45 countries and regions, more than 11,000 athletes and 43 sports across 71 disciplines; it is Japan's third Asian Games after Tokyo 1958 and Hiroshima 1994. As of 12 September 2026 these Games have not yet begun.[4] The OCA's published calendar runs on to Doha 2030 and Riyadh 2034.[8]

The Southeast Asian Games, the South Asian Games and the Islamic Solidarity Games cover overlapping territory but belong to other bodies and are not OCA Games under Article 37.[1]

Who are its members?

Forty-five National Olympic Committees are members.[2] [6] Article 13.1 restricts membership: "membership of the OCA is only open to the National Olympic Committees (NOCs) of Asia which are recognized as NOC by the International Olympic Committee (IOC)", with Article 13.1.1 preserving the existing membership from retrospective effect.[1]

Article 13.3.3 makes each member "the official body for all matters relating to the OCA Games and any OCA activity in its own country/territory", and requires that all arrangements for participation and all communication on them be addressed to that member — the provision that routes national team selection for Asian Games entry through the NOC.[1] Article 13.4.2 makes participation both a right and an obligation.[1]

Article 13.4.4 requires members to conduct their affairs "without any undue interference by their respective Governments" and to adhere strictly to the autonomy of sport.[1] Japan is among the 45, and hosts the 2026 edition.[4]

References

  1. Olympic Council of Asia — Constitution and Rules (PDF). Accessed September 2026.
  2. Olympic Council of Asia — Council. Accessed September 2026.
  3. Olympic Council of Asia — Sheikh Joaan Bin Hamad Al Thani elected OCA President, Tashkent, 26 January 2026. Accessed September 2026.
  4. Olympic Council of Asia — Asia ready to shine as Aichi-Nagoya to host historic 20th Asian Games. Accessed September 2026.
  5. International Olympic Committee — Olympic Charter, in force as from 3 February 2026 (PDF). Accessed September 2026.
  6. International Testing Agency — Olympic Council of Asia (partner page). Accessed September 2026.
  7. Olympic Council of Asia — Contacts. Accessed September 2026.
  8. Olympic Council of Asia — official site home. Accessed September 2026.