17-year-old Kumkum Mohod wins gold in individual recurve at Asian Games

India has won its first Olympic gold medal in athletics at the 2026 Asian Games. On Tuesday, the girls' team, consisting of Kiran Pahal, Puvamma Machathira, Prachi Choudhary, and Vidya Ramradja, secured first place in the women's 4x400 meters relay, demonstrating outstanding performance.

The Indian squad achieved victory by finishing with a time of 3:29.69. Bahrain won the silver medal, and China took the bronze. This marks India's first gold medal in track and field at the current Asian Games. The Indian athletes maintained a high speed throughout the final relay race and raised the tricolor flag on the podium.

Previously, India had won a bronze medal in the men's 4x400 meters relay, setting the best season result—3:01.61. This team included Dharmvir Choudhary, Manu Tikkinil, Jai Kumar, and Vishal Tennarasu.

Furthermore, India received a bronze in the mixed 4x100 meters relay. The team, comprising Gurindvir Singh, Animesh Kujur, Sneha Satyanarayana, and Harita Bhadra, finished third, achieving the best seasonal result of 41.06 seconds.

Pooja Singh won a bronze medal in the women's high jump, clearing a height of 1.84 meters. Although this result was significantly below her personal best, it was sufficient to earn a medal at the Asian Games.

Meanwhile, Gulvir Singh won a bronze medal in the men's 5000 meters race, finishing with a time of 13:32.75. Thus, Gulvir completed a series of three medals on the podium at these Asian Games held in Japan.

On Tuesday, September 29, India added another eight medals, including gold in shooting and athletics, increasing the total number of medals won to 53.

Niru Danda achieved a historic feat on Tuesday. The 26-year-old shooter from Haryana won India's first Olympic gold medal in the women's individual trap event at the Asian Games. Furthermore, Niru set a new Asian record by scoring 28 points.

Before her victory, Niru and India also won a silver medal in the women's trap team event. Thus, in one day, Niru helped the team reach the podium and then won gold in the individual event herself, making history.

This year has been one of many successes for Niru. In July, she became the first Indian woman to win gold in trap at the World Shooting Cup held in Italy. Now she has added a new chapter to the history of Indian shooting at the Asian Games.

By scoring 28 points, Niru surpassed the old Asian record of 24 points on four targets. Her shooting accuracy not only secured her gold but also allowed her to enter the tournament's record books.

Indian weightlifting star Mirabai Chanu achieved a historic feat by winning a silver medal at the 2026 Asian Games. She secured this award in the women's 49 kg weight class. This marked her first podium finish at the Asian Games.

In the women's 49 kg category, Ri Song Gum from the Democratic People's Republic of Korea won the gold medal. For Mirabai, this achievement is particularly significant because she failed to win a medal and placed fourth at the previous Asian Games; this time, she overcame that barrier by taking silver.

With this medal, Mirabai Chanu has matched the legendary Indian weightlifter Karnam Malleswari. Mirabai is now the second Indian weightlifter to win medals at major international tournaments such as the Olympic Games, Asian Games, Para Games, World Championships, as well as Asian and Para Championships.

In her career, Mirabai already holds an Olympic silver medal, gold and silver medals from the World Championships, as well as numerous gold medals from the Para Games. The silver medal at the Asian Games is another major victory in her brilliant career.

Ri Song Gum, a two-time world champion from North Korea, demonstrated record performance by lifting 215 kg (94 kg + 121 kg) to win gold, completing a triumphant streak of titles at the Asian Games.

Chanu began the competition by successfully completing all three snatch attempts, lifting 83 kg, 85 kg, and 87 kg. Following this, she achieved her best lift in the clean and jerk—111 kg—and after several near-miss attempts, finally secured a medal at the Asian Games.