INDIA finished fourth at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games with 85 medals, retaining its position among Asia’s leading sporting nations but falling well short of its record performance in Hangzhou, China, three years ago.
The Indian contingent won 21 gold, 27 silver and 37 bronze medals, 21 fewer overall and seven fewer golds than its 106-medal haul at the previous Games.
Prime minister Narendra Modi congratulated the team, praising its “determination, passion and remarkable sporting spirit”.
“As the Asian Games 2026 draw to a close, my compliments to every member of the Indian contingent for representing our nation with determination, passion and remarkable sporting spirit,” Modi said in a post on X.
He also congratulated the medal winners, saying their performances had brought “immense joy to the nation”.
India’s fourth-place finish was secured by a strong final phase, with the country winning 11 gold medals in the last two days. Archery was one of the biggest success stories. India won five gold, two silver and two bronze medals, with Kumkum Mohod becoming the first Indian to win an individual Asian Games recurve gold.
The recurve team also won medals in all five events, suggesting India is beginning to challenge South Korea’s traditional dominance in the discipline.
Wrestling produced six medals, including golds for Sujeet Kalkal and Aman Sehrawat, while Nitesh Siwach and Sunil Kumar contributed medals in Greco-Roman wrestling.
Pranavi UrsAgencies
Pranavi Urs became the first Indian woman to win an individual Asian Games golf gold. She also helped India win silver in the women’s team event with Aditi Ashok and Diksha Dagar.
Boxing produced three gold medals. Lovlina Borgohain improved on her Hangzhou silver by winning gold, while Parveen Hooda returned from a 22-month suspension to claim the women’s 65kg title. Ankush Panghal also won gold in the men’s 80kg category.
India’s women’s hockey team ended a 44-year wait for Asian Games gold, beating China 1-0 in the final. The victory also secured direct qualification for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.
The men retained their Asian Games title after beating Malaysia in the final and also booked their Olympic place.
After the women won gold in cricket, Shreyas Iyer’s men defeated Pakistan by 19 runs in the final to retain the Asian Games title.
Meanwhile, shooting fell sharply from its Hangzhou haul of 22 medals to 15, including three golds. Suruchi Singh and Kamaljeet won the 10m air pistol mixed team gold, while Neeru Dhanda became the first Indian woman to win an individual Asian Games gold in trap shooting. She also won mixed team gold with Kynan Chenai.
Athletics also struggled after the withdrawal of javelin champion Neeraj Chopra through injury. Tajinderpal Singh Toor missed out on a third successive Asian Games gold, while Murali Sreeshankar and Sarvesh Kushare took silver.
India’s women’s 4x400m relay team provided athletics’ only gold.
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