India Conclude Historic Asian Para Games 2026 Campaign With Record 114 Medals, Secure Highest-Ever Tally With 30 Gold

India wrapped up its Asian Para Games campaign with a record 114 medals, including 30 gold, after a strong final-day finish in Nagoya on Friday. The agency said the total improved on India’s earlier best of 108 medals and 27 gold from Hangzhou in 2023. For the first time in these Games, para-athletics was not the leading source of golds, with shuttlers, archers and shooter Mona Agarwal helping lift the final-day tally to 30 gold, 35 silver and 49 bronze.

The 168-member Indian contingent reached that mark even though it was nearly half the size of the squad that had gone to Hangzhou. India ended Friday on 30 gold, 35 silver and 49 bronze after collecting nine golds on the final day, its best single-day haul in this edition.

India were placed fourth in the table at the close of their campaign. That position could still change because a few finals are scheduled on Saturday and India have no athletes in those events.

Badminton And Archery

Badminton drove the early charge.

India won three badminton gold medals on Friday, with Nitesh Kumar and Naveen Sivakumar taking individual titles. The 31-year-old Nitesh beat fellow Indian Pramod Bhagat 21-18, 21-16 in the men’s singles SL3 final and later added a mixed doubles SL3-SU5 silver with Thulasimathi Murugesan.

Naveen, a Games debutant, then outclassed Indonesia’s Fredy Setiawan 21-9, 21-17 to win the men’s singles SL4 title. Murugesan had a busy day too. The 24-year-old Paris Paralympics silver medallist won gold in the women’s doubles SL3-SU5 with Manasi Joshi after a 21-16, 21-13 win over China’s Yang Qiuxia and Xiao Zuxian. She also took silver in the women’s singles SU5 after losing 18-21, 11-21 to Yang.

Archery added another gold. Paralympic champion Harvinder Singh and debutant Vijay Sundi beat China’s Yun Duo and Zhao Lixue 5-1 in the men’s doubles recurve final. Bhawna Choudhary and Pooja Jatyan settled for silver in the women’s doubles recurve after a 0-6 loss to China’s Gao Zihan and Wang Xueqian.

Athletics And Records

Athletics still led the medal rush.

The sport delivered 65 medals for India overall, 12 more than at Hangzhou in 2023. On Friday, Sandeep and Haney struck gold with world record performances in the men’s 400m T64 and men’s javelin throw F37/38 events.

Reigning Paralympic and world champion Sumit Antil led an Indian sweep of the men’s javelin throw F42-44/61-64 combined event with 72.46m. Mahendra Gurjar finished second with 59.03m and Sanjay Sandeep Sargar took bronze with 64.48m. Gurjar ranked ahead of Sargar because of the more severe nature of his disability in the classifications covering congenital limb difference or surgical amputation.

Wheelchair-bound Pranav Soorma added India’s last gold of the day by winning the men’s club throw with a Games record 32.87m. Earlier, Sandeep clocked a world record 52.28 seconds to win the 400m T64 final, while Ajay Kumar took bronze in 53.61 seconds, a Games record.

Haney followed with a world record 60.49m for gold in the javelin throw F37/38 final. India also picked up two athletics silvers through Nimisha Chakkungalparambil in the women’s long jump T47 and Parmod Bijarnia in the men’s 1500m T46. Parmod clocked 4:09.65 for second place.

Mona’s Shooting Masterclass

Mona Agarwal broke the world record to win the women’s 50m rifle 3 positions SH1 event. She shot 357.5 at the Aichi Prefecture General Shooting Gallery for her second gold medal of the Games.

Agarwal had secured India’s first quota for the 2028 Paralympics earlier this year. The SH1 category is for athletes with lower-limb or upper-limb impairments who can support the weight of the firearm with their own arms. Earlier in the Games, she had won gold in the women’s 10m air rifle standing SH1 with a Games-record 250.0, while Avani Lekhara took silver with 249.6.

Swimming And Medals

The Indian swimming contingent finished with 11 medals, including three silver, beating expectations at the Games. The 22-year-old Himanshu Nandal completed a hat-trick of bronze medals on the final day by finishing third in the men’s 100m freestyle S11.

Nandal, who was born blind due to an optic nerve failure, clocked 1:05.90 and finished behind Japan’s Uchu Tomita and China’s Chuanzhen Sun. He had earlier won bronze in the men’s 400m freestyle and 100m breaststroke S11 events. Ravi Budigina also ended the Games with three medals—two silver and one bronze.