Union Sports Minister Mansukh Mandaviya congratulated Indian long jumper Murali Sreeshankar on winning the silver medal in the men’s long jump at the 2026 Commonwealth Games, calling it a “proud moment for Indian Athletics.”
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Sreeshankar recorded a best jump of 8.09m to secure silver, finishing just behind Jamaica’s Tajay Gayle, who won gold with a leap of 8.15m. Scotland’s Stephen Mackenzie took bronze with 8.08m.
The Kerala athlete remained in contention for gold until his final attempt but managed 7.97m on his sixth jump, ending six centimeters short of Gayle’s winning mark.
This silver medal made Sreeshankar the first Indian men’s long jumper to win two Commonwealth Games medals, having previously won silver at the 2022 Birmingham Games.
The achievement represents a significant milestone for the 27-year-old, who recovered from a serious patellar tendon injury that ruled him out of the Paris 2024 Olympics. He returned to international competition determined to regain his position among the world’s leading long jumpers and added this second Commonwealth Games silver to his record.
Born in Palakkad, Kerala, Sreeshankar comes from a family of accomplished athletes. His father and coach, S Murali, won a triple jump silver at the 1989 South Asian Games, while his mother, KS Bijimol, secured an 800m silver at the 1992 Asian Junior Athletics Championships.
Sreeshankar has consistently succeeded internationally, holding a personal best of 8.41m and having won silver medals at the 2023 Asian Athletics Championships and the Hangzhou Asian Games prior to his Glasgow performance.
India also featured another finalist in the men’s long jump, with Lokesh placing fifth in his Commonwealth Games debut after a best jump of 7.97m.
Sreeshankar’s silver contributed to India’s three medals on Day 7, raising the country’s overall tally at the Glasgow Commonwealth Games to 15 medals: three gold, nine silver and three bronze.
India’s medalists so far include Mirabai Chanu (gold, weightlifting), Sharmila Dhankar (gold, women’s shot put F57), Dilip Mahadu Gavit (gold, men’s T47 100m), Mohammed Basil Morssinganakth (silver, men’s T47 100m), Murali Sreeshankar (silver, men’s long jump), Rishikanta Singh (silver, weightlifting), Muthupandi Raja (silver, weightlifting), Gyaneshwari Yadav. (silver, weightlifting), Sarvesh Kushare (silver, men’s high jump), Gulveer Singh (silver, men’s 10,000m), Harjinder Kaur (silver, weightlifting), Valluri Ajaya Babu (silver, weightlifting), Bindyarani Devi (bronze, weightlifting), Shilpa K. Shyla (bronze, women’s shot put F57) and Jhandu Kumar (bronze, para powerlifting).
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