Olympic medalists Manu Bhaker and Mirabai Chanu are set to headline India’s campaign on a busy day at the 2026 Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya, with multiple disciplines presenting medal opportunities.
Bhaker, a double Olympic medalist, will compete in the women’s 10m air pistol event, seeking to add an Asian Games medal to her growing list of achievements. After missing out on an individual medal at the Hangzhou Asian Games in 2023, the Paris 2024 Olympic bronze medalist aims to make a strong comeback.
Tokyo 2020 silver medalist Mirabai Chanu is the focus in the women’s 49kg weightlifting category. Having narrowly missed a medal at Hangzhou 2023 due to an injury that prevented her from completing her final clean and jerk attempt, Chanu will look to build on her recent gold at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow and secure a podium finish at an Asian Games, the only major multi-sport event where she has yet to win a medal.
Shooting will offer additional medal prospects as the skeet shooters complete their three-day qualification rounds. Anantjeet Singh Naruka, showing improvement after a difficult first round, is among the standouts to watch.
India’s men’s badminton team will face the People’s Republic of China in the semi-finals after securing a medal by defeating Japan in the quarter-finals. Lakshya Sen and his teammates aim to advance to the gold medal match.
The squash competition will commence with Indian players participating in first-round singles matches; Anahat Singh, who has received a bye, will start her campaign on Thursday. These singles events serve as a qualification pathway to the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics, with quotas for the men’s and women’s champions.
Wushu competitor Roshibina Devi will take part in the women’s 60kg sanda semi-finals, where she is assured of winning her third individual Asian Games medal in as many appearances.
Indian teams will also continue their hockey and kabaddi group-stage matches, while boxer Ankush competes in the men’s 80kg category. Swimming will present further opportunities for Indian athletes to win medals.
With several medal contenders in action across disciplines, India aims to build on its performance as the Asian Games reach a critical phase.