India’s para-athletes produced a spectacular finish to their campaign at the 2026 Asian Para Games in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan, storming to a record 114 medals with a remarkable haul of nine gold medals on the final day of competition.
From world-record performances in athletics and shooting to commanding victories in para-badminton and archery, India’s final-day surge underlined the depth of its talent and secured its best-ever campaign at the continental event. India finished fourth in the overall medal standings with 30 gold, 35 silver and 49 bronze medals, surpassing its previous best of 108 medals at the 2023 Hangzhou Games. The achievement was particularly significant as India competed with a contingent of 168 athletes, compared with 309 in Hangzhou.
The final day saw India collect nine gold medals, its biggest single-day gold haul of the competition. While para-athletics remained the country’s strongest discipline with 65 medals, para-badminton, para-archery and para-shooting ensured that the closing-day spotlight was shared across sports. The campaign also featured multiple world records, Games records and podium sweeps, making it a landmark performance for Indian para-sport. Nitesh Kumar and Naveen Sivakumar lead the para-badminton charge.
India’s para-badminton contingent delivered a memorable finish, with Nitesh Kumar and Naveen Sivakumar securing gold medals in their respective men’s singles categories. Paris Paralympic champion Nitesh defeated compatriot and Tokyo Paralympic gold medallist Pramod Bhagat 21-18, 21-16 in the men’s singles SL3 final. The victory highlighted Nitesh’s composure in a high-pressure contest against one of India’s most accomplished para-shuttlers. Naveen, making his Asian Para Games debut, produced an assured performance to defeat Indonesia’s Fredy Setiawan 21-9, 21-17 in the men’s singles SL4 final.
His victory added another gold to India’s tally and marked an impressive arrival on the continental stage. Nitesh later secured silver in the mixed doubles SL3-SU5 event alongside Thulasimathi Murugesan, who enjoyed an equally productive campaign. Murugesan and Manasi Joshi won gold in the women’s doubles SL3-SU5 final, defeating China’s Yang Qiuxia and Xiao Zuxian 21-16, 21-13. Murugesan also claimed silver in the women’s singles SU5 final after losing 18-21, 11-21 to Yang Qiuxia.
Her gold and two silver medals capped a campaign that demonstrated her consistency across three events. Para-badminton finished as India’s second-biggest medal contributor, delivering 16 medals, including three gold, five silver and eight bronze. Para-athletics once again formed the backbone of India’s medal-winning campaign, accounting for 65 medals, including 22 gold. The final day brought several outstanding performances, with Sandeep and Haney setting world records in their respective events.
Sandeep clocked 52.28 seconds to win gold in the men’s 400m T64 final, setting a world record. Fellow Indian Ajay Kumar secured bronze in 53.61 seconds, a Games record. Haney produced another historic performance in the men’s javelin throw F37/38 final, recording a world-record effort of 60.49 metres to claim gold. Reigning Paralympic and world champion Sumit Antil led an Indian podium sweep in the men’s javelin throw F42-44/F61-64 combined event.
Antil won gold with a throw of 72.46 metres, while Mahendra Gurjar and Sanjay Sandeep Sargar completed the Indian sweep with silver and bronze, respectively. Wheelchair athlete Pranav Soorma added another gold in the men’s club throw, recording a Games-record distance of 32.87 metres. Para-shooter Mona Agarwal produced one of the standout performances of the day, winning gold in the women’s 50m rifle three positions SH1 event with a world-record score of 357.5. It was her second gold medal of the Games, following her victory in the women’s 10m air rifle standing SH1 event.
In para-archery, Paralympic champion Harvinder Singh partnered debutant Vijay Sundi to win the men’s recurve doubles gold, defeating China’s Yun Duo and Zhao Lixue 5-1 in the final. India’s women’s recurve doubles team of Bhawna Choudhary and Pooja Jatyan settled for silver after losing 0-6 to China’s Gao Zihan and Wang Xueqian. Para-swimming proved another bright spot for India, with the contingent finishing the Games with 11 medals. Himanshu Nandal completed a hat-trick of bronze medals by finishing third in the men’s 100m freestyle S11 in 1:05.90.
He had earlier won bronze in the 400m freestyle and 100m breaststroke events. Ravi Karthik Budigina also enjoyed a successful campaign, collecting two silver medals and one bronze. India’s 114-medal campaign was defined by more than its final tally. World records, victories over established champions and podium sweeps demonstrated the country’s growing competitiveness across multiple disciplines. The final-day performances were particularly significant because gold medals came from athletics, badminton, shooting and archery.
This breadth of success offers encouragement ahead of future international competitions, while the overall result reinforces the importance of sustained investment in coaching, training facilities and athlete development. India’s fourth-place finish in Aichi-Nagoya marks a major milestone. The next challenge will be to build on this momentum and translate continental success into further achievements at world championships and the Paralympic Games.
