Cricket at LA Olympics to begin on July 12, medal matches on July 20 and 29
Los Angeles (PTI): Cricket's much-hyped return to the Olympics at LA Games will take shape at the Fairgrounds Stadium in the city of Pomena -- about 50km from Los Angeles -- from July 12 with the medal matches scheduled on July 20 and 29, 2028.
A total of six teams each in men's and women's sections and 180 players will compete in the T20 format in the quadrennial showpiece, which hosted cricket for the first and only time in 1900.
There are no matches scheduled on July 14 and 21 and most of the the matchdays will be double headers, according to the competition schedule released by the organisers.
The only time the gentleman's game was played at the Olympics was in Paris way back in 1900. Only two teams, Great Britain and France, competed in a two-day match with the former winning the gold medal.
With a total of 90 athlete quotas allocated in the men's and women's sections, the 12 competing teams can name 15-member squads.
Cricket's growing popularity can be gauged from the fact that three venues in the United States -- Grand Prairie, Lauderhill, and New York -- organised several matches of the 2024 T20 World Cup, jointly hosted by USA and the West Indies.
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) had approved cricket, baseball/softball, flag football, lacrosse (sixes) and squash as five new sports to feature at the 2028 Games.
"When the world comes here for these Games, we will highlight every neighbourhood as we host a Games for all and work to ensure it leaves a monumental legacy.
"We are already delivering that legacy as we announce there have been more than one million enrollments in PlayLA. I want to thank LA28 and the International Olympic Committee for making these programs possible and for their continued work to host the greatest Games yet," said Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass in a statement.
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AIMPLB delegation meets Kiren Rijiju, seeks one-year extension for uploading Waqf properties on UMEE
New Delhi: A delegation of the All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) met Union Minister for Minority Affairs Kiren Rijiju on Thursday to discuss the difficulties faced by mutawallis and Waqf Boards in uploading property details on the UMEED portal. The delegation also submitted a memorandum outlining several demands.
According to the Board, lakhs of registered waqf properties could not be uploaded due to severe technical issues and the short deadline prescribed under Section 3B of the amended Waqf/UMEED Act. The representatives argued that the responsibility for uploading already-registered properties should have been assigned to the Waqf Boards, and sought at least a one-year extension for uploading unregistered properties.
The delegation highlighted that the six-month timeline mandated under the Act has caused widespread hardship, as both mutawallis and State Waqf Boards struggled with glitches and procedural delays. They noted that even the Punjab, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, and Rajasthan Waqf Boards approached the Tribunal seeking additional time, extensions that were subsequently granted, indicating that compliance within six months was not feasible.
The AIMPLB also pointed out a key discrepancy: although the UMEED portal was launched on 6 June 2025, the UMEED Rules and declaration forms required for uploading were notified only on 3 July 2025. Therefore, the Board argued, the portal’s launch date cannot be treated as the commencement date for calculating compliance timelines.
Given these challenges, the delegation urged the government to extend the initial six-month deadline by at least one more year. They expressed confidence that such an extension would prevent repeated approaches to the Tribunal except in exceptional circumstances. The Board further reminded the Minister that Section 113 of the Waqf Act empowers the Centre to issue orders to resolve difficulties arising during implementation.
Minister Rijiju heard the delegation’s concerns “with seriousness and attention” and assured them that the issues would be addressed soon.
The delegation comprised AIMPLB Vice President Syed Sadatullah Husaini; General Secretary Maulana Mohammed Fazlur Rahim Mujaddidi; Executive Member and MP Barrister Asaduddin Owaisi; former MP Mohammad Adeeb; Jamiat Ulama-e-Hind leaders Maulana Muhammad Hakimuddin Qasmi and Mufti Abdur Raziq; and Board members Fuzail Ahmad Ayyubi, Hakeem Muhammad Tahir, and Nabila Jamil.
The statement was issued by Dr. Mohd. Vaquar Uddin Latifi, Office Secretary of the AIMPLB.
