India finished fourth at the Aichi-Nagoya 2026 Asian Games with 85 medals, 21 gold, 27 silver and 37 bronze, across a Games that returned to Japan for the third time. The campaign played out in a competition India itself invented, at a host nation it beat into second place at the very first edition 75 years ago.
Games born in New Delhi
The Asian Games are an Indian idea before they are anything else. The Asian Games were first held in 1951, very soon after the end of World War II, advocated by Nehru, the first Prime Minister of India, who wished to reestablish the bonds between Asian countries that had been broken in the war through sport and contribute to lasting peace in Asia.
The inaugural edition ran in New Delhi in March 1951. A total of 489 athletes representing 11 Asian National Olympic Committees participated in 57 events across eight sports and disciplines. India ranked second on that first medal table, with 15 gold, 16 silver and 20 bronze, finishing behind Japan only.
Japan’s third Asian Games
Japan has now staged the continental Games three times, and Aichi-Nagoya closed the loop on a long relationship with the event. Japan played host for the third time, following Tokyo 1958 and Hiroshima 1994, which saw their biggest medal haul of 218 medals.
The 2026 edition ran from 19 September to 4 October, organised by the Olympic Council of Asia.
The scale is far removed from 1951. The 2026 Asian Games featured 43 sports and 469 events across 54 venues, bringing together more than 11,000 athletes from 45 countries for the continental multi-sport event, while drawing interest across related areas like Betting Apps.
India’s medal story
India’s fourth-place finish held off two close rivals on the final day. India tied with Uzbekistan on 21 gold medals, but India’s 27 silver medals compared to Uzbekistan’s 25 gave them the edge for fourth place. The gold came in a wide spread of disciplines, with team sports and shooting carrying the heaviest load.
| India at Aichi-Nagoya 2026 | Count / selected golds |
| Gold | 21 |
| Silver | 27 |
| Bronze | 37 |
| Total medals | 85 |
| Selected gold disciplines | Cricket, hockey, kabaddi, wrestling, shooting |
Across those 85 medals, India’s strongest returns came from the sports it has long dominated, with hockey, kabaddi and cricket all delivering double-podium golds.
You can follow the national contingent’s wider record through coverage of India at the Asian Games.
For historical context on the event’s reach, the governing body, the Olympic Council of Asia, oversees that growth from the first New Delhi Games onward.
The record cricket final
India’s first gold of the Games came from the women’s cricket team, and it arrived with a record attached. India clinched the women’s cricket gold medal at the Asian Games 2026 with a dominant 147-run victory over Sri Lanka in the final, retaining the Asian Games crown.
The batting set up the margin. After Harmanpreet Kaur opted to bat, Smriti Mandhana smashed 79 off 45 balls, while Richa Ghosh added an unbeaten 49 off 22 to help India post a record 216/3, with Shafali Verma also contributing 48. The bowlers then finished the job quickly, as Sri Lanka struggled in the chase and were bowled out for 69 in 15.4 overs, with Deepti Sharma claiming 3/6.
The win reset an Indian record. Their 147-run victory surpassed the previous biggest winning margin of 144 runs, which came against Malaysia in 2018. It was also a defence, following India’s maiden cricket gold at Hangzhou 2023.
Wrestling delivered India’s best mat campaign in decades, finishing with six medals, including golds for Aman Sehrawat and Sujeet Kalkal, for India’s best campaign in the sport since 1962. Kabaddi, the other heartland sport, held firm on both sides, with the men beating Iran in the final and the women doing the same.
The clearest signal for Los Angeles 2028 is written into the hockey result, where both India sides booked their Olympic places directly. The victory completed India’s first-ever men’s and women’s hockey double gold at the Asian Games, only the third time an Indian team sport has achieved a double gold, after kabaddi and cricket. With two Olympic quotas banked in Japan and medal depth stretching across shooting, wrestling and athletics, India leaves Aichi-Nagoya with a selection map already pointing toward the next Games.
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