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Asian Games 2026: Indian contingent secures spectacular track and field medals in Aichi-Nagoya.
The final day of the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games delivered historic athletics glory for India. The session combined heartbreak, triumph, and long-awaited gold on the track.
India’s women’s 4x400m relay team headlined the event with a dominant gold medal finish. This victory extended the nation’s multi-decade streak of dominance in Asian Games relays.
Here is a comprehensive look at the major talking points from a memorable campaign in Nagoya.
Relay Queens Reclaim the Crown
After settling for silver in 2023, India’s women’s 4x400m relay squad delivered a tactical masterclass to reclaim gold.
The quartet of Kiran Pahal, M.R. Poovamma, Prachi Choudhary, and Vithya Ramraj clocked a winning time of 3:29.69.
They narrowly edged out Bahrain’s formidable lineup featuring Olympic medalist Salwa Eid Naser, while China took the bronze medal.
The triumph marked an extraordinary personal milestone for two athletes on the track.
Veteran M.R. Poovamma secured her third career Asian Games relay gold, adding to her victories in 2014 and 2018.
Anchor runner Vithya Ramraj held her nerve on the final lap to capture her third medal of the Games.
Her clutch performance came just a day after shattering P.T. Usha’s 42-year-old national hurdles record.
This victory officially restored India’s long-standing supremacy in the women’s 4x400m relay. Indian squads had previously dominated the event, capturing six consecutive Asian Games medals from Busan 2018 to Jakarta 2022.
“We knew the legacy of this event for our country. Bringing the gold back home was the only goal we had on our minds when we stepped on to the track ” —M R Poovamma
Gulveer Singh’s Historic Hat-Trick
Long-distance star Gulveer Singh etched his name into Indian athletics history.
He clocked 13:32.75 to secure bronze in a fiercely contested 5000m final. Singh finished just behind Bahrain’s Birhanu Balew and Japan’s Tomonori Yamaguchi.
This bronze added to his previous silvers in the 1500m and 10,000m races. He is the first Indian Man to win three individual track medals at one Games.
Legendary sprinter P.T. Usha was the last Indian to achieve that in 1986. The historic triple podium cements Gulveer as a modern distance-running icon.
India Asian Games Athletics: 44 Years of Relay Glory
Beyond individual brilliance, the results in Aichi-Nagoya highlighted an incredible streak for Indian athletics. The women’s 4x400m gold and two relay bronzes extended a remarkable national milestone.
India has now secured at least one athletics relay medal for 44 straight years at the Asian Games.This unbroken podium streak stretches all the way back to the 1982 New Delhi Games.
Generations of Indian sprinters have ensured the country never returns empty-handed from the baton exchange. It proves the enduring depth and systematic focus placed on relay programs across Indian athletics.
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A Resounding Haul Across Track and Field
The Indian athletics contingent amassed an impressive medal haul across a wide array of disciplines. The Nagoya Games showcased the incredible depth of India’s current track and field rosters.
Final Athletics Medal Tally
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