Reason for the withdrawal of the Asian Youth Games from Tashkent was announced

It was previously reported that the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) had withdrawn the hosting rights for the 2025 Asian Youth Games from Uzbekistan, awarding them instead to Bahrain.  

At the December 2 online meeting of the OCA Executive Board, the National Olympic Committee (NOC) of Uzbekistan submitted a letter stating it would be unable to host the Games on schedule in September 2025.  

OCA Director General Husain Al Musallam explained that the 2025 Asian Youth Games are tied to the qualification process for the 2026 Youth Olympic Games in Dakar, Senegal, due to age restrictions. As a result, postponing the event was not an option.  

The Bahrain Olympic Committee expressed its readiness to host the Games, with adequate infrastructure for sports venues, accommodations, and medical services. The Executive Board noted Bahrain’s successful organization of the International School Sports Federation (ICF) Gymnasium in October 2024, which welcomed over 5,000 participants, including 4,000 athletes.  

The OCA Executive Board unanimously approved Bahrain as the host for the 2025 Asian Youth Games, thanking Uzbekistan for its investments and expressing optimism that Uzbekistan could host major sporting events in the future.