Asian Games 2026 Day 12 Highlights: India sweep gold medals in compound archery team events

In the team event, the Indian women are tied 6th at -3, five behind leaders Singapore, who are four clear of their nearest opponents.

from Tushar Bhaduri

Boxer Kapil Pokhariya reflects on bronze medal at Asian Games.

“While I am disappointed that I couldn’t make it to the final, I am still very proud of winning this bronze medal. I have been working with my coaches for a long time, and this medal is the result of that hard work," the boxer said. "Every player dreams of representing India on a big stage like this, and I feel very positive about where this journey is headed. Inspire Institute of Sport has supported me throughout, and I am truly grateful for that. I want to dedicate this medal to my coaches and family, who have believed in me every step of the way.”

With a lot of players still on the course, the Indian women's team has ended the first day with a tally of -3 (the best two scores being counted for the team aggregate). The men's team had earlier been tied fifth with -3, six behind leaders and hosts Japan, and four behind Korea and China.

from Tushar Bhaduri

Aditi's approach to her last pin, and she isn't best pleased with her effort. Understandable, as it lands at a fair distance from the target and spins back into a swale, further away from the hole. She will have her work cut out to finish with a par.

from Tushar Bhaduri

Lest we get too ambitious and K-Dreamy, there is also Iran to ward off for 4th place.

10 G,16 S currently

India - 8 G, 21 S as of now.

Korea - 21G

Just how massive is Lovlina storming into her second straight Asian Games final?

Massive.

The Olympic bronze medallist who broke through in 2021 has stayed in the medal mix, with consistent medals at multi sport events. After edgeing past Kazakhstan's Natalya Bogdanova 3-2 in the women's 75kg semi-final, she became the first Indian woman boxer to reach back-to-back Asian Games finals, assuring India of at least a silver. Hopefully gold.

She is the first ever Indian, female or male, to make back to back Asiad Finals.

India's biggest names

Vijender: Bronze - Gold

Mary Kom: Bronze - Gold

Vikas Krishna - Bronze - Bronze - Gold

Lovlina: Silver - ? (Gold?)

It is astounding also because she has moved up a weight division from welter to middleweight, so the height advantage isn't nearly there in the 75kg as in the 69kg of her Olympics. Two Asiad finals without missing a beat though.

Underrated despite the medal. Quiet Assamese. Super economical use of punches. Vijender...ish.

Lovlina beats reigning World champion to make second straight final, India to have two women in Asian Games boxing final for historic first time

Lovlina edged Kazakhstan's Natalya Bogdanova, the reigning 70kg world champion, 3-2 in a split decision in the women's 75kg semifinal. She became the first Indian woman boxer to reach back-to-back Asian Games finals.

She joins Parveen Hooda and Ankush Panghal, who had won their semifinals on Tuesday. India now has three boxers in finals from 11 entries, already bettering the four medals won from 13 categories in Hangzhou.

Kapil Pokhariya and Priya finished with bronze on debut and in their respective categories. Kapil went down 1-4 to Uzbekistan's Turabek Khabibullaev in the men's 90kg semi, while Priya lost to China's Yang Chengyu in the women's 60kg semifinal.

India have won four golds, and two bronze medals today.

Gold: Women's compound archery team of Jyothi Surekha Vennam, Prithika Pradeep, Taniparthi Chikitha

Gold: Mixed doubles pairing of Taniparthi Chikitha and Sahil Rajesh Jadhav (also claimed a quota spot at the Los Angeles Olympics)

Gold: Men's compound archery team of Sahil Jadhav, Kushal Dalal and Thirumuru Ganesh Mani Ratnam

Gold: Neeru Dhanda and Kynan Chenai in mixed trap event

Bronze: Boxer Priya Ghanghas

Bronze: Boxer Kapil Pokhariya

Medal assured: The women's squash team of Tanvi Khanna, Anahat Singh and Joshana Chinappa entered the semis

Medal assured: Men's squash team

Medal assured: Boxer Lovlina Borgohain entered the final

Poha papad is a large Indian fritter that goes from a thin, insignificant, totally uninteresting sheet to a white, fluffy, large, cloud-in-sky like crispy munchy in seconds of a deep fry.

That is India's gold medal tally from now on. Golds will gold hereforth. Like Poha papad.

But the number to keep an eye on is the dynamic 21 in Live Time. And its progression as Korea's gold count.

No matter where India ends in relative count, it's Korea that it will be chasing to reach 3rd place on medals tally. So, gold count is relative.

Comparing it to 28 is so 2023.

As the opening round in women's golf enters its final stages, India has fallen back a bit. They are now tied 6th at two-under, six behind early pace-setters Singapore. Pranavi Urs is tied second at three-under with two holes to play. She is three shots behind Singapore's Shannon Xuan Yin Tan.

Pranavi started poorly with a bogey on her first hole, the 10th on the course, but has made four birdies since without dropping any more shots.

from Tushar Bhaduri

Compound Archery is one event where Indians have successfully replicated their performance from the last edition. With three gold and more chances in individual events.

To keep in context, the team is a very different look from 2023 with only Jyothi Surekha Vennam being the constant.

By Pritish Raj

Indian men's team facing China in the gold medal match. India trailed 58-60 after the first end, a deficit that's reduced to one point.

India trail 178-179 after three ends.

India hit two nines in the first end. China hit a single nine, in the third end.

Six more arrows left, two arrows from each archer. A gold medal's on the line.

Indian men's team facing China in the gold medal match. India trailed 58-60 after the first end.

And China have a nine in the second end (which is corrected to a 10 upon inspection), while India have all six arrows in the 10 ring.

So India still trail by 2 points after the end of 2 ends.

Meanwhile, Jyothi Surekha Vennam, fresh from the women's team's gold medal earlier in the day, is in the stands hoping that India win their third gold of the day in compound archery.

Kapil Pokhariya trails by 0-5 after the first round against reigning world champion Turabek Khabibullaev of Uzbekistan in men's 90kg semifinal.

From Nitin Sharma

Kynan Darius Chenai (born 29 January 1991) is one of India's most accomplished trap shooters and has been a key member of the national shooting team for over a decade. Hailing from Hyderabad, he was introduced to the sport by his father, Darius Chenai, a former National Trap Shooting Champion. Kynan began his shooting journey in 2003 and later trained under four-time Olympian and renowned coach Mansher Singh. A former junior national champion, Kynan won the Trap gold medal at the 2008 Commonwealth Youth Games, marking his arrival on the international stage. He secured an Olympic quota for India in 2016 and represented the country at the Rio Olympic Games in the men's trap event. His career reached another significant milestone at the 2022 Asian Games in Hangzhou, where he won a gold medal in the men's trap team event and a bronze medal in the individual trap event, contributing to India's record-breaking performance in shooting. Known for his consistency, composure, and technical precision, Kynan remains one of India's most experienced and dependable trap shooters on the international circuit.

Achievements

Gold – 2008 Commonwealth Youth Games, Pune, India – Trap (Men)

Gold – 2021 ISSF World Cup, New Delhi, India – Men's Trap Team

Silver – 2022 ISSF World Cup, Lonato, Italy – Men's Trap Team

Gold – 2022 Asian Games, Hangzhou, China – Men's Trap Team

Bronze – 2022 Asian Games, Hangzhou, China – Men's Trap Individual

Lovlina says that her coaches told her the wrong score after the second round. "It was 4-1, they told me 3-2. So I thought I could push harder. And it helped," she tells the broadcaster after entering the women’s 75kg final.

Lovlina Borgohain won by a split 3-2 decision against Natalya Bogdanova of Kazakhstan in women’s 75kg semifinals

Sing a new song, Chikitha!

Compound Archery XD Los Angeles Olympics quota & Asian Games gold

It's a small but important detail in this excellent story on Chikitha Thaniparthi by Nitin Sharma in The Indian Express. Chikitha's first brush with sport was in martial arts. She learnt karate and went right up to black belt.

How does it help in Archery, you might ask.

Archery is a stationary sport. Prizes stillness. Demands extreme mental strength, concentration. There is a rhythm that elite sport demands -- where your heart rate could be off the charts, but you need to nail that one trigger or arrow releasing movement, which still needs shoulder power. To get that balance right, many athletes train in martial arts - karate, judo, jiu Jitsu, to achieve absolute mental poise / strength in that moment. Precision in imbalanced positions is the goal. It's why a Karate black belt can translate into an Asiad gold many many years later. It is mind training that becomes muscle memory.

Saina Nehwal did it in badminton. But Chikitha has gone all the way to gold.

Read about the family struggles of the Telangana girl, alongside her partner's. Sahil Jadhav from Wai, Satara, will see celebrations with "kandi pedha" - that less-sweet sweet with powdered sugar coating the melt-in-mouth fudgey pedha.

For Chikitha, it's chitti muthyalu (small pearl) rice - that delectable rice that's best served in biryanis or pulao because the pearls swallow the spice.

Big day for Compound Archery. Gold. Olympics, ba-by.

After the first 20 shots in mixed team trap final, the Indian pair of Neeru Dhanda and Kynan Chenai have climbed to the second spot with a score of 16. Indian pair is assured of a medal with Iran being eliminated.

from Nitin Sharma

Lovlina Borgohain wins by a split 3-2 decision against Natalya Bogdanova of Kazakhstan in women's 75kg semifinals.

In the final round, only two of the judges gave the Indian the round. But whatever she did in the second round must have helped her cause. She enters the final!

One more boxing semi-final coming up with an Indian boxer involved.

Men’s 90kg: Kapil Pokhariya vs Turabek Khabibullaev (Uzbekistan) | Time: 12:00 PM IST

A setback for India's singles hopes as Dhakshineswar Suresh is knocked out in the third round by Chinese Taipei's Chun-hsin Tseng with a 6-3, 6-4 scoreline. Tseng will face Indians again, later today in the mixed doubles quarterfinals - Yuki Bhambri and Rutuja Bhosale.

Sumit Nagal is leading 5-2 in the first set against Uzbekistan's Sergey Fomin, meanwhile.

From Bhuvan Gupta

Gold: Women's compound archery team of Jyothi Surekha Vennam, Prithika Pradeep, Taniparthi Chikitha

Gold: Taniparthi Chikitha and Sahil Rajesh Jadhav in mixed compound archery team

Bronze: Indian debutant Priya Ghanghas lost 1-4 to China's Yang Chengyu in the women's 60kg semi-final

Nitin Sharma on Priya Ghanghas vs Yang Chengyu of China in women’s 60kg semifinals

After the second round, Priya trails 1-3 with a score card of one judge tied 19-19. Both boxers fighting with some no-holds-barred boxing!

After the first stage in the men's 25m Pistol Rapid Fire qualification, Anish Bhanwala is placed with a score of 290. The second stage and the final will be played tomorrow

from Nitin Sharma

In shooting, the Indian mixed trap team pair of Neeru Dhanda and Kynan Chenai have qualified for the final finishing fourth in the qualification. China topped the list followed by Qatar and Iran.

From Nitin Sharma

Priya Ghanghas will face Yang Chengyu of China in women's 60kg semifinals in a few minutes from now. A win will ensure at least a silver for the Indian boxer

Taniparthi Chikitha (who won a gold in the compound archery women’s team event and a gold in the mixed team event) is a compound archer from Telangana. Hailing from a farming family, her introduction to archery was inspired by her father, who has been her first guiding force. Since she was in Class 2, her father encouraged her to take up archery after reading about the sport in a newspaper. She formally began her archery journey in 2018, and over time, the sport developed from an initial interest into a deep passion. Her family’s encouragement and support provided her with the foundation to pursue the sport with determination. In 2021, Chikitha began pursuing archery professionally, marking an important phase in her development as a competitive athlete. She made her international breakthrough in 2025 and subsequently emerged as an important member of India’s compound archery squad. Her most significant achievement came at the 2025 World Archery Youth Championships in Winnipeg , where she won the Under-21 Women’s Individual Gold Medal, becoming the first Indian woman to win the title in the history of the event. She also represented India in the 2025 Archery World Cup circuit, contributing to the country’s strong performances on the international stage.

Achievements

● World Archery Youth Championships: 1 Gold (Individual – 2025)

● World Cup Stage: 2 Silver (Team – 2026, 2025)

● Asian Grand Prix Circuit: 1 Gold (Team – 2026), 1 Silver (Team – 2026), 1 Bronze (Team – 2025)

The Indians had hit all tens in the first two sets before they shot the nine’s. Koreans hit two nine's in the first two sets followed by a one nine in the last two sets.

India starts with a ten in the tiebreak. Korea follows with a ten. Sahil hits a ten. Phew by a whisker.

Korean archer hits a nine..

A GOLD MEDAL FOR THE INDIAN PAIR AND A QUOTA FOR THE LOS ANGELES OLYMPICS

FROM NITIN SHARMA

After 10 arrows that hit the 10 ring, India hit a nine with Taniparthi Chikitha and then Sahil too hitting a nine.

This means that with the final end coming up, India lead by a single point. 118-117 after the third set. The Indian pair hit a nine each in the third set.

From Nitin Sharma

Alright, here we go! The Indian pair of Taniparthi Chikitha and Sahil Rajesh Jadhav have started shooting for the mixed team's gold medal, which will be the second gold of the day for India in compound archery.

The Indian pair start off with four consecutive 10s! meanwhile the Korean pair has a nine in their third arrow.

At the end of the first end, the Indian pair leads by one!

Nitin Sharma adds: The Indian team of Chikitha Taniparhi and Sahil Jadhav leads Korea 40-39 and the broadcasters have gone for an ad break... Remember an LA Olympics quota is at stake in the mixed compound team finals. The winner gets the LA Olympics quota with the event making its debut in Olympics in LA

Meanwhile, good news coming in from the judo mat as Asmita Dey, recently a medallist at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow for India, has beated Ha Ngoc Chi of Vietnam by ippon in women's 48kg Round of 16.

Sunil Kumar lost 0-10 to Japan's Taizo Yoshida in the men's Greco-Roman 87 kg category. He will feature in the bronze medal bout now

By Pritish Raj

WHAT IMPERIOUS SHOOTING UNDER PRESSURE! The Indians came into the final end leading by two points, but Taniparthi Chikitha hit a nine early on, meaning the Indian pair was always looking over their back. But eventually, there are no more missteps, only shots of 10.

India have a 156-155 victory! And they are through to the final to defend a gold that India had in Hangzhou 2023 thanks to Jyothi and Tejas .

Back to the archery ranges we go, where Taniparthi Chikitha and Sahil Rajesh Jadhav are facing a Thailand pair in the semi-final in the mixed team compound archery.

India pair has taken a 39-37 lead after the first end! The Indians are defending gold here from Hangzhou 2023, won by Jyothi and Tejas.

Prithika Pradeep (who won a gold in the compound archery women’s team event) was born in India and began her archery journey as a school student, initially taking up the sport as a hobby in Class 5. She was drawn to archery because it was new and interesting to her, and what began as a recreational activity gradually developed into a strong interest in the sport. Recognizing her growing passion and potential, her parents encouraged her to pursue archery more seriously and enrolled her in professional coaching classes from Class 6. Their support played an important role in helping her transition from a school-level hobbyist to a competitive athlete. She made her international breakthrough in 2025 and has since established herself as an important member of India's compound women's team. Her consistent performances on the international circuit have contributed to India's success in compound archery, particularly in team events. Throughout her international career, Prithika has won 7 international medals — 1 Gold, 5 Silver, and 1 Bronze. These performances marked significant milestones in her emerging international career and reflected her development into a competitive member of India's senior compound archery squad.

Achievements

● World Archery Youth Championships: 2 Silver (Individual - 2025; Team - 2025)

● World Cup Stage: 2 Silver (Team - 2026, 2025), 1 Bronze (Individual - 2026)

● Asian Outdoor Championships: 1 Gold (Team - 2025), 1 Silver (Individual - 2025)

Jyothi Surekha Vennam (who won a gold in the compound archery women's team event), born on 3 July 1996 in Challapalli, Andhra Pradesh, is one of India's most accomplished compound archers. A former national-level swimmer, she transitioned to archery at a young age and quickly rose through the ranks to become one of the world's leading compound archers. She made her senior international debut in 2011 and has since represented India at the Asian Games, World Archery Championships, Archery World Cups, Asian Championships, and the World Games. She created history at the 2023 Asian Games by winning three Gold medals in the Women's Individual, Women's Team, and Mixed Team events, becoming the first Indian archer to achieve this feat at a single edition of the Games. Throughout her international career, Jyothi has won multiple international medals, including multiple Gold medals at the World Archery Championships, Archery World Cups, Asian Games, Asian Championships, and the World Games, making her one of India's most decorated archers.

Achievements

● World Archery Championships: 1 Gold (Team - 2023), 4 Silver (Individual - 2021; Team - 2025, 2021, 2017), 3 Bronze (Individual - 2023, 2019; Team - 2019)

● Arjuna Award 2017

● World Archery University Championships: 1 Gold (Team - 2016)

● World Archery Youth Championships: 1 Bronze (Team - 2013)

● World Cup Final: 2 Silver (Individual - 2025; Team - 2018)

● World Cup Stage: 11 Gold (Individual - 2024, 2023; Team - 2026, 2025, 2024, 2024, 2024, 2023, 2023, 2023, 2022), 8 Silver (Individual - 2025, 2022; Team - 2026, 2025, 2025, 2024, 2018, 2018), 7 Bronze (Individual - 2023; Team - 2025, 2023, 2018, 2018, 2018, 2018)

● Universiades: 1 Silver (Team - 2015) World Games: 1 Bronze (Team - 2022)

● Asian Games: 2 Gold (Individual - 2023; Team - 2023), 1 Silver (Team - 2018)

● Asian Outdoor Championships: 7 Gold (Individual - 2025, 2021, 2015; Team - 2025, 2023, 2019, 2017), 5 Silver (Individual - 2023; Team - 2021, 2019, 2017, 2015), 2 Bronze (Individual - 2017; Team - 2011)

● Asian Grand Prix Circuit: 2 Gold (Individual - 2015; Team - 2016), 2 Silver (Team - 2016, 2015)

There it is, match done, tie done. India into the semifinals and guaranteed a podium finish after beating Singapore 2-0.

There was an evitability to Anahat's win, even when she was trailing 5-7 in the first game. Like the commentators said, she's been playing like a top-10 player for quite some time now.

from Bhuvan Gupta

Tanvi hands India the lead, beating Au Yeong 11-6, 4-11, 15-13, 11-1. The Singaporean's sister Wai Yhann now comes up against India's 18-year-old superstar Anahat Singh.

From Bhuvan Gupta, who also informs us that there is an eight-year gap between Wai Yhann Au Yeong we will see agianst Anahat Singh and Wai Iynn Au Yeong who lost to Tanvi.

Big result for India, beating South Korea to enter the compound archery final. Beating South Korea is always massive but shouldn’t come as a surprise as India are the defending champions here. They play China for second successive gold in this event

from Mihir Vasavda in Nagoya

South Korea claw back with a perfect 60-shot end! A couple of nines in that end of six arrows from the Indians. They allow the Koreans to come within one point of them.

Republic of China are awaiting in the final for the winner of this semis.

Mihir Vasavda, The Indian Express' man on the ground in Nagoya, writes in:

The morning sessions of archery medal day were delayed by half hour because of heavy overnight rains, presumably (although there is no official comment yet). Right now, it’s bright and hot as the Indian team makes its way on to the podium to face South Korea. India are the defending champions

Good morning sports fans. Still catching your breath from yesterday's medals, particularly the track and field medal rush where Indian won five medals including a gold in the span of two hours?

Well, guess what. Today, the wrestlers start taking the mat. and the archers start entering the medal rounds as well. Just about four days to go for the end of the Asian Games in Nagoya.

India had 107 medals in Hangzhou three years ago, which included 28 golds. The nation is at 53 medals with six golds. What will be India's final medal tally?