Dr. P. T. Usha congratulates Indian athletes and recognises landmark performances across Olympic sports
New Delhi, October 6, 2026: The Indian Olympic Association (IOA) today congratulated Team India on the conclusion of its Asian Games 2026 campaign in Aichi-Nagoya, celebrating the dedication, determination and performances of Indian athletes who represented the country on one of Asia’s biggest sporting stages.
India concluded the Games with 85 medals — 21 gold, 27 silver and 37 bronzes — finishing fourth in the overall medal standings. The result represents India’s second-highest medal tally in Asian Games history. A 503-member Indian contingent competed in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan, from September 19 to October 4. Within the Olympic sports programme, India won 78 medals, underlining the depth and growing competitiveness of Indian high-performance sport.
The breadth of India’s performance across Olympic sports was one of the defining features of the campaign. Athletics led the medal contribution with 24 medals, while shooting produced 15 and archery nine. Boxing and wrestling added six medals each, with squash contributing five. Hockey and cricket each delivered two gold medals, while India also reached the podium in golf, sailing, badminton, rowing, table tennis and weightlifting.
Athletics produced a particularly strong campaign, with 24 medals across track and field. Kiran Pahal, M. R. Poovamma, Prachi Choudhary and Vithya Ramraj combined for gold in the women’s 4x400m relay, while Gulveer Singh won three individual medals, including two silvers and a bronze. Sawan Barwal ended India’s 44-year wait for a marathon medal, Baranica Elangovan became India’s first Asian Games women’s pole-vault medallist, and Vithya Ramraj added individual bronze to her relay gold while surpassing Dr. P. T. Usha’s 400m hurdles mark from 1984.
Shooting delivered 15 medals, led by Neeru Dhanda, who won individual and mixed-team trap golds and a team silver before being chosen as India’s women’s flag-bearer for the Closing Ceremony. Elavenil Valarivan, Himanshu Dhillon, Rudrankksh Patil, Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar, Esha Singh and several other Indian shooters also contributed to a deep medal haul across rifle, pistol and shotgun events.
Archery produced nine medals, including five golds. Jyothi Surekha Vennam and the Indian compound teams contributed to the gold-medal haul, while Ankita Bhakat, Kirti Sharma and Kumkum Mohod won women’s recurve team gold. Kumkum Mohod also created history by winning individual women’s recurve gold, and was recognised with the inaugural Jaspal Rana Award as the outstanding female Indian athlete of the Games.
Boxing delivered three gold medals through Lovlina Borgohain, Parveen Hooda and Ankush Panghal, alongside three bronze medals, making it India’s most successful Asian Games boxing campaign by gold-medal count. Wrestling secured six medals, including golds for Aman Sehrawat and Sujeet Kalkal. The performance was India’s best Asian Games wrestling medal haul since 1962, with Aman Sehrawat becoming India’s first Asian Games champion in the men’s 57kg category. Sujeet Kalkal was recognised with the Raja Randhir Singh Award as the outstanding male Indian athlete of the Games.
In team sports, the women’s hockey team ended a 44-year wait for Asian Games gold, while the men’s team retained its title. Both teams secured direct qualification for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games. India also completed a golden double in cricket, with both the women’s and men’s teams winning their respective Asian Games titles.
Squash added five medals, including singles silvers for Anahat Singh and Abhay Singh and three team and doubles bronzes. Anahat became the first Indian woman to win an Asian Games women’s singles silver. In golf, Pranavi Urs became the first Indian woman to win an individual Asian Games golf gold, with India also taking women’s team silver. Sailing contributed three medals, including silver for Prince Noble Kurisinkal and Manu Francis and bronzes for Shital Verma and Harshita Tomar and Nethra Kumanan.
India also reached the podium in badminton, rowing, table tennis and weightlifting. The men’s badminton team won bronze; Satnam Singh and Salman Khan secured rowing bronze in the men’s double sculls; Manush Shah and Diya Chitale won mixed-doubles bronze in table tennis; and Mirabai Chanu won silver in the women’s 49kg category, giving India its first Asian Games weightlifting medal since 1998.
Dr. P. T. Usha, President of the Indian Olympic Association, said: “I am immensely proud of every athlete who represented India at these Asian Games. Medals are an important measure of success, but what gives me even greater satisfaction is the depth, diversity and quality of the performances across Olympic sports. We saw established champions deliver, young athletes break new ground, teams reclaim historic titles and several disciplines produce performances that point towards a stronger future for Indian sport.
From athletics, shooting and archery to boxing and wrestling, and from hockey and cricket to squash, golf, sailing, badminton, rowing, table tennis and weightlifting, our athletes demonstrated the breadth of India’s sporting potential. Every medal represents years of discipline, sacrifice and belief, and every athlete who wore the Indian colours contributed to this campaign.
I congratulate our athletes, coaches, support staff, federations and everyone who has worked behind the scenes to make these performances possible. I also extend my sincere gratitude to Japan and the Aichi-Nagoya 2026 Organising Committee for their warm welcome and for delivering a memorable Games. We leave Japan with wonderful memories, new friendships and great respect for our hosts.”
Dr. P. T. Usha added: “The performances in Aichi-Nagoya show that India’s sporting ambition is being matched by sporting capability. Our responsibility now is to build on this momentum — to strengthen athlete pathways, support high-performance programmes, invest in our federations and ensure that athletes have the systems they need to compete consistently at the Olympic and international level. The IOA remains committed to working with all stakeholders to advance that shared objective.”
The 20th Asian Games took place in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan, from September 19 to October 4, bringing together athletes from across Asia. For Team India, the Games marked another important chapter in the country’s sporting journey and provided valuable experience as athletes continue to compete at the highest international level.
About the Indian Olympic Association (IOA)
The Indian Olympic Association is the governing body for the Olympic Movement in India. Its mission is to develop, promote and protect the Olympic Movement in the country and encourage the development of high-performance sport.
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Indian Olympic Association
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