India's Best Day Yet at Asian Para Games 2026: 26 Medals, 7 Golds
India enjoyed its best day at the Asian Para Games 2026 on Thursday, winning 26 medals, including seven golds, as a remarkable medal rush across athletics, archery, swimming, badminton, and table tennis took the country's overall tally to 88.
Armless Archer Sheetal Devi Leads the Charge
Armless archer Sheetal Devi led the charge with two gold medals in less than two hours, while the track-and-field contingent remained India's biggest contributor. Suvarna Raj, Shailesh Kumar, Anjanaben Bumbadiya, Dilip Mahadu Gavit, and Solairaj Dharmaraj were among the other gold medallists on a memorable day for the Indian contingent.
Seven Golds Help India Reclaim Fourth Place
The seven golds helped the country reclaim fourth place in the standings after it slipped to sixth on Day 2 and fifth on Day 3. India's tally now stands at 21 gold, 26 silver, and 41 bronze medals.
Sheetal Devi Strikes Twice
Sheetal, the 19-year-old reigning world champion and world No. 1, began her golden run by teaming up with Toman Kumar to defend India's mixed team title. The Indian duo beat Indonesia's Teodora Audi Ayudia Ferelly and Ken Swagumilang 151-148. Less than two hours later, Sheetal returned to the range for the women's individual final. After overcoming a four-point deficit, she defeated Singapore's Alim Nur Syahidah 142-139 to repeat her triumph from the Hangzhou 2023 Asian Para Games.
Historic Achievement in Archery
India also celebrated a historic achievement in archery as Swati Chaudhary won the country's first-ever Asian Para Games medal in the W1 category. She settled for silver after losing 4-6 to China's Cen Mengkan in the women's individual final.
Athletics Powers India's Seven-Gold Haul
The day began with Suvarna Raj winning gold in the women's F54 discus throw with a best effort of 15.66m. The 44-year-old wheelchair athlete recorded four throws beyond 15 metres to secure the biggest win of her career. India then enjoyed a podium sweep in the men's high jump T63 event. Shailesh Kumar, who had won bronze in the long jump on Wednesday, led the way with a Games-record effort of 1.89m.
Other Notable Performances
Other notable performances included Anjanaben Bumbadiya winning the women's 400m T47 gold in 59.97 seconds, with compatriot Jayanti Behera taking silver in 1:00.65. Dilip Mahadu Gavit, who had won the men's 100m T47 gold on Wednesday, added another title by winning the men's 400m T47 final in 48.27 seconds. Solairaj Dharmaraj provided a fitting finish to the day's athletics action, successfully defending his men's long jump T44/T62/T64 title with an Asian-record effort of 7.15m.
Swimming and Badminton Medals
India added four medals in the pool, taking its overall swimming haul to 10, although a gold remained elusive. Eighteen-year-old Ravi Budigina secured bronze in the men's 50m freestyle S13 with a time of 25.89 seconds. It was his third medal of the Games, following silver-medal finishes in the 100m backstroke and freestyle events. Indian shuttlers also enjoyed a productive day, with Pramod Bhagat and Nitesh Kumar setting up an all-Indian men's singles SL3 final.
Table Tennis Bronze
Bhavina Patel and Subham Wadhwa secured bronze in mixed doubles XD7, losing 6-11, 11-8, 5-11, 8-11 to South Korea's Jang Yeongjin and Lee Migyu in the semifinals.
China continued to dominate the overall standings, crossing 300 medals to reach 313, including 149 golds. Hosts Japan were second with 136 medals, including 40 gold, while Uzbekistan occupied third place with 117 medals, including 37 gold. India's seven-gold day lifted the contingent back to fourth place, with 88 medals overall and momentum building across multiple disciplines.
