Asian Para Games: India add 26 more medals to take tally to 88 after strong Day 4

Nagoya, October 22 (IANS) India produced another stellar day at the Asian Para Games as the athletes added 26 more medals to take the tally to an impressive 88 after Day 4 in Nagoya on Thursday.New benchmarks were registered; a podium clean sweep and stellar performances in para-athletics, para-archery and para-swimming hogged the limelight in another fruitful day as India moved closer to the 100-medal mark.Speaking after Day 4, Satyanarayan, Head Coach of Team India, reflected on the performances and kept his focus on the triple-digit medal mark."Reaching 88 medals is a proud moment for the entire Indian contingent and reflects the determination, discipline and relentless efforts of our athletes. Their performances across disciplines, including record-breaking achievements and historic milestones, demonstrate the growing strength of Indian para-sports."Every medal represents countless hours of hard work and the collective commitment of our athletes, coaches and support staff. With the momentum we have built, we aim to cross the 100-medal mark and conclude the Games on an even stronger note," Satyanarayan said.Star Indian archer Sheetal Devi won a compound mixed team gold with Toman Kumar and another gold in the women's individual compound event. Debutant Swati Chaudhary etched her name into the history books by winning India's first-ever medal in the Women’s W1 Individual event at the Asian Para Games. She secured a silver after narrowly losing the final to China's Mengkan Cen 4–6.India also had another podium sweep at the Games. Para athletics continued giving strong results to India as the athletes swept the medals in the Men's High Jump T42/T63, and replicated the achievement from the 2022 Games.Shailesh Kumar won the gold and established a new Games record by clearing 1.89m. Varun Singh Bhati secured silver with a jump of 1.84m, while Rahul won the bronze at 1.81m.Meanwhile, Suvarna Raj won a gold medal in the Women’s Discus Throw F54 with a throw of 15.66m. Tejalben Damor also brought laurels as she won a silver in the Women’s 400m T12, concluding her campaign with one silver and one bronze medal.India had a double-medal finish in the Women’s 400m T47 event. Anjanaben Bumbadiya won the gold medal with a time of 59.97 seconds, while Jayanti Behera claimed the silver with a time of 1:00.65. In the Men's 400m T47, Dilip Mahadu Gavit further strengthened India’s medal tally with a gold.Para swimming also brought more laurels as Kapil Kumar clinched a silver medal in the Men’s 400m Freestyle S10 with a time of 4:38.44. Swatik Patil also added a medal as he claimed a bronze in the Men’s 100m Breaststroke SB9, with a time of 1:13.77s, while Tejas Nandkumar also secured a bronze in the Men’s 100m Backstroke S7 with a time of 1:18.58s.India has 88 medals after the end of Day 4 with 21 gold, 26 silver, and 41 bronze as the contingent hold the fourth position in the overall standings.