Indian para-athletes continued their medal rush at the Asian Para Games, winning 10 medals, including three gold, on Wednesday (October 21, 2026), taking their para-athletics tally to 30 after two days of competition. India had won 14 medals, including five gold, on Tuesday (October 20, 2026).

Ayush Verma won gold in the men’s shot put F53 event on Wednesday (October 21, 2026), followed by Praveen Kumar in the men’s high jump T44/64 and Sachin Khilari in the men’s shot put F46.

India also won four silver medals through Banti in the men’s high jump T44/64, Bhagyashri Jadhav in the women’s shot put F34, Mohd Yasser in the men’s shot put F46 and Manjeet in the men’s javelin F12/13. Anubhav Choudhary in the men’s 100m T35, Parveen in the men’s shot put F46 and Rakeshbhai Bhatt in the men’s 100m T37 won bronze medals.

India added five gold, four silver and five bronze medals in para-athletics on Tuesday (October 20, 2026), taking its tally in the discipline to 20, the second highest after China’s 23 medals, comprising 13 gold, five silver and five bronze.

Nishad Kumar won gold in the men’s high jump T47 event on Tuesday (October 20, 2026), becoming only the third Indian to win two gold medals in a single edition of the Asian Para Games. He joined para-runner Ankur Dhama and armless archer Sheetal Devi, who achieved the feat at the previous edition in Hangzhou, China.

Nishad cleared 2.04m to win gold and set a Games record. He had earlier won gold in the men’s long jump T47 event on Monday (October 19, 2026). Ankur won gold in the men’s 5,000m T11 and 1,500m T11 events, while Sheetal won the women’s individual compound open and mixed team compound open titles at the previous edition.

Ayush, 35, from Meerut in Uttar Pradesh, won his second medal of the ongoing Games after securing bronze in the men’s javelin throw F53/F54 event on Tuesday (October 20, 2026). He produced a throw of 8.16m in his fifth attempt to win the shot put gold. Ayush sustained a spinal cord injury in a road accident that left him wheelchair-bound.

The F53 classification is for field athletes whose trunk and leg movements are significantly affected, while their hand grip is affected to a lesser degree. They compete from a seated position, generating throwing power using their chest, upper back and shoulders.

Praveen, a double Paralympic medallist, defended his high jump gold with a Games record of 2.05m, leading an Indian one-two finish. Banti won silver with a personal best of 1.92m.

“I was not well two weeks back and was thinking how I would defend my gold medal. After that I was recovering for one week, but my body was not strong and jumps were not coming. But in the end it turned out that all these illnesses are nothing if you have to win gold for the country,” Praveen said.

The 23-year-old, who won gold at the 2024 Paralympics, hails from Govindgarh village in Uttar Pradesh. Born with a lower-limb impairment that left one leg shorter than the other, he took to athletics at a young age and specialised in the high jump under coach Satyapal Singh. He also won bronze at the 2025 World Para Athletics Championships in New Delhi.

T44 and T64 athletes often compete together in combined events. T44 is for athletes with lower-limb impairments who run without prostheses, while T64 is for athletes who run with a prosthetic lower limb.

Khilari defended his title in the men’s shot put F46 event, leading an Indian medal sweep. The 36-year-old, who won silver at the 2024 Paris Paralympics, secured gold with his sixth and final throw of 15.87m, breaking the previous Games record of 15.67m. Yasser won silver with 15.06m, while Parveen took bronze with 14.94m.

“In the last Para Asiad, Paralympics and World Para Championships, most of the time I was alone on the podium. Today, two more Indians joined me, that is incredible,” Khilari said.

The F46 classification is for field athletes with an above- or below-elbow amputation, or an equivalent upper-limb impairment. They compete standing and generate throwing power using their hips and legs.

Khilari, who hails from a farming family in Karagani village in Maharashtra’s Sangli district, suffered a serious injury to his left hand in a bicycle accident. Multiple surgeries failed to repair it fully because of gangrene and muscle atrophy. He was introduced to para-sports in 2015 and improved under coach Satyanarayana. A qualified mechanical engineer, he also teaches students preparing for the UPSC and State civil services examinations.

India’s gold rush on Tuesday (October 20, 2026) began with Deepthi Jeevanji winning the women’s 400m T20 event in a Games record time of 56.36 seconds. The 23-year-old from Telangana secured her second consecutive Asian Para Games gold in the event. She also holds the Asian record and won gold at the 2024 Para World Championships.

Deepthi, from a village in Warangal district, was raised by parents who worked as small farmers and labourers. A physical education teacher first spotted her running talent, and badminton player Pullela Gopichand later suggested that she undergo testing for intellectual impairment. Deepthi has spoken about her parents’ support despite criticism from fellow villagers.

Seasoned sprinter Simran won her maiden Asian Para Games gold in the women’s 200m T12 event, setting a Games record of 24.80 seconds. Tejalben Damor, making her debut at the continental event, won bronze in 25.23 seconds.

Simran, 26, won bronze at the 2024 Paralympics and is making a comeback with guide Shivam after her previous guide, Umar Saifi, was banned for a doping violation. Born prematurely with impaired vision, Simran spent seven months in an incubator and has said she faced ridicule during childhood because of her disability.

In the men’s discus throw F51/52/53 event, Pranav Soorma won gold with an Asian record of 11.66m, while Ram Ratan Singh took silver. Soorma, 32, had previously won gold in the club throw F51 event at the Asian Para Games and the 2024 Paralympics.

Soorma sustained a severe spinal cord injury at 16 when a cement sheet fell on his head, leaving him paralysed. After spending six months in hospital, he gradually adapted to life in a wheelchair and took up para-sports. He later completed a postgraduate degree in commerce at the Delhi School of Economics and secured a job as an assistant manager at a bank.

India also swept all three medals in the men’s discus throw F44/64 event, with Devender Kumar winning gold with a throw of 49.71m. Rakesh and Pardeep Kumar took silver and bronze, respectively.

Devender, 32, from Kishkandha village in Haryana’s Charkhi Dadri district, suffered a serious injury to his left leg in an accident involving his mother when he was 21. He underwent surgery on his left hip and spent two months in hospital.

The F44 and F64 classifications cover athletes with lower-limb impairments. F44 athletes compete without a prosthesis, while F64 athletes compete with one.

India’s other medallists on Tuesday (October 20, 2026) included Preeti Pal, who won silver in the women’s 200m T35 event, and Praveen Sharma in the men’s shot put F11, Ayush Verma in the men’s javelin F53/54 and Hokato Hotozhe Sema in the men’s shot put F56/57, who each won bronze.

The Asian Para Games 2026 are being held in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan, from October 18 to 24. The fifth edition features athletes from 45 National Paralympic Committees competing across 18 sports, with India participating in 11 disciplines.

India entered the Games after its best-ever campaign at Hangzhou 2023, where it won 111 medals — 29 gold, 31 silver and 51 bronze — to finish fifth overall. India opened its medal account in Aichi-Nagoya with a one-two finish in the women’s 10m air rifle standing SH1 event, where Mona Agarwal won gold ahead of Avani Lekhara.

Para-athletics has emerged as India’s biggest medal contributor at the ongoing Games. India also opened its para-archery medal account with Sheetal Devi and Payal Nag winning silver in the women’s compound doubles, while Kasthuri Rajamani added another silver in para-powerlifting.India stood fifth in the overall medal standings with 47 medals, 12 gold, 17 silver and 18 bronze, according to the latest tally provided in the source material.