Asian Para Games: India sign off with record 114 medals as contingent marches at closing ceremony

Aichi-Nagoya, October 24 (IANS) India’s para-athletes marched with national flags at the closing ceremony of the Asian Para Games 2026 at Paloma Mizuho Stadium on Friday, bringing the curtains down on the country’s most successful campaign at the continental showpiece with a record haul of 114 medals.Double gold medallist para-shooter Mona Agarwal and athlete Nishad Kumar led the Indian contingent as co-flag-bearers at the ceremony, which marked the end of an impressive campaign in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan, where India secured 30 gold, 35 silver and 49 bronze medals.The tally surpassed India’s previous best of 108 medals at the 2022 edition in Hangzhou, where the country won 27 gold, 32 silver and 49 bronze medals after three medals were subsequently revoked following doping violations involving Neeraj Yadav and Parveen.India’s achievement in 2026 was particularly significant given that the contingent comprised 168 para-athletes, considerably fewer than the 309 who competed in Hangzhou three years ago. Despite the smaller contingent, the Indian team delivered historic performances across para-athletics, para-badminton, para-archery, shooting, table tennis and swimming.Among the standout performances was para-badminton, where Paralympic champion Nitesh Kumar defeated world champion Pramod Bhagat 21-18, 21-16 in the men’s singles SL3 final to win gold and ensure an all-Indian podium.Thulasimathi Murugesan and Manasi Girishchandra Joshi clinched gold in women’s doubles SL3-SU5, defeating China’s Qiuxia Yang and Zuxian Xiao 21-16, 21-13. Thulasimathi also secured silver in women’s singles SU5, while Nithya Sre Sumathy Sivan finished with silver in women’s singles SH6 after losing to China’s Fengmei Li.India also made history in para-archery, with Harvinder Singh and debutant Vijay Sundi winning gold in men’s recurve doubles. Pooja Jatyan and Bhawna Choudhary claimed silver in women’s recurve doubles, giving India its first medal in the event at the Asian Para Games.Para-athletics once again contributed significantly to the medal tally, with several athletes producing record-breaking performances.Haney set a world record of 60.49 metres in the men’s javelin throw F37/38 competition, winning gold in the T37 category. Debutant Sandeep also struck gold in the men’s 400m T64 with a time of 52.28 seconds, setting a world record in the T44 category, while Ajay Kumar claimed bronze in the same race.India completed a podium sweep in the men’s javelin throw F42-F44/F61-F64 final, with Sumit winning gold in T64 with a throw of 72.46 metres for 1,112 points. Mahendra Gurjar took silver in T42 with a Games-record effort of 59.03 metres, while Sandip Sanjay Sargar secured bronze in T44 with a Games-record throw of 64.48 metres.Pranav Soorma won gold in the men’s club throw F51 with a Games-record distance of 32.87 metres, while Dharambir took bronze. Navdeep Singh won bronze in the men’s javelin throw F40/41, while Rakeshbhai Bhatt secured bronze in the men’s 200m T37.Sandeep added another medal to his tally with bronze in the men’s 100m T44, clocking 11.67 seconds to finish the Games with one gold, one bronze and a world record.In para-shooting, co-flag-bearer Mona Agarwal capped her campaign with gold in the women’s 50m rifle 3 positions SH1, scoring 357.5 points to set world and Asian Para Games records. She also became the first Indian para-shooter to win a medal in the event at the Games.India’s para-table tennis contingent added a bronze through Jehan Dorab Madan and Shubham Wadhwa in men’s doubles Class MD4. At 50, Madan became the oldest Indian medallist at the Games.Para-swimmer Himanshu Nandal won bronze in the men’s 100m freestyle S11 in 1:05.90, taking his medal tally at the Games to three bronze medals.