Genomic Insights and Athletic Excellence: Advancing Inclusivity in India’s Sports Development

India’s rich genetic diversity, shaped by centuries of migration and regional adaptation, encompasses over 4600 distinct ethnic groups. This diversity provides a powerful foundation for studying traits related to health, adaptation, and performance. The Genome India Project has already sequenced over 10,000 genomes from 83 populations, cataloguing more than 135 million variants, many of them novel and not represented in global datasets. Yet, despite this scientific wealth, India’s sporting achievements have not consistently reflected its full potential. Integrating genomic insights into athlete development could change this. Genomics can personalise training, nutrition, and recovery, reducing injury risk and extending careers. Applied thoughtfully, it also has the potential to make sport more inclusive by ensuring that resources and opportunities reach athletes from rural, tribal, and underrepresented backgrounds, not just urban elites. Realising this vision will require policy support, affordable testing, multilingual consent, and strong partnerships between government, research institutions, and professional leagues. By embedding sports genomics within its wider sports science ecosystem, India can both enhance performance and build a fairer, more sustainable sporting future.