Asian Games 2026: Murali Sreeshankar Wins Long Jump Silver Despite Injury Scare In Nagoya

Murali Sreeshankar has done it again. On a rain-soaked night in Nagoya, the 27-year-old leapt 8.07m to win silver in the men's long jump at the Asian Games, matching his Hangzhou 2023 result. He qualified second overall with 7.84m, then broke the 8m barrier in the final and held second place through the second half of the competition.

The margins were razor-thin. Shi Yuhao won gold with 8.17m, while Sreeshankar finished just one centimetre ahead of Anvar Anvarov (8.06m) for silver. Lin Yu-tang was fourth with 8.05m. The top four were separated by only 12cm, making it one of the tightest long jump finals in Asian Games history. David Solomon Patturaj also produced a solid 7.70m to finish seventh.

The medal is even more remarkable given the circumstances. Sreeshankar slipped on the jumping board in the heavy rain during his fourth attempt and took a heavy fall. His father said he sprained his ankle, forcing him to withdraw from his final two jumps.

The Palakkad jumper has made a habit of big-stage podiums. After his Hangzhou silver, he won silver at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham and again at the 2026 Games in Glasgow, where he jumped 8.09m.

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That Glasgow medal capped a comeback from a patellar tendon rupture in April 2024, which needed surgery and ruled him out of the Paris Olympics. His personal best is 8.41m, set in 2023. He is coached by his father, S. Murali, himself a former triple jumper.