When India’s women’s cricket team beat Sri Lanka on 22 September to retain its Asian Games title, it handed the country its first gold of the Aichi-Nagoya Games. Ten days later, women are still at the heart of India’s medal story. From a record-setting trap shooter to an archery team that matched a world-record score, Indian women have been winning on the biggest continental stage in 2026.
Here is a clear, fact-checked look at what they have won so far, who the key names are, and why this edition matters. All figures are as of 1 October 2026, with the Games running until 4 October.
Why Indian women are the story of Asian Games 2026
The 2026 Asian Games are being held in Aichi Prefecture and Nagoya, Japan, from 19 September to 4 October. Olympics.com’s medal tracker listed 63 medals for India at last check, including 10 golds, with several days of competition still to go. For comparison, India’s record haul came at Hangzhou in 2023, when the team won 106 medals, including 28 golds.
What stands out this time is how many of India’s headline moments belong to women, both in team events and in individual finals.
Key medals won by Indian women so far
| Sport | Event | Athlete or team | Medal |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cricket | Women’s T20 tournament | India women’s team | Gold |
| Kabaddi | Women’s tournament | India women’s team | Gold |
| Shooting | Women’s trap | Neeru Dhanda | Gold (Asian record) |
| Shooting | Trap mixed team | Neeru Dhanda and Kynan Chenai | Gold |
| Shooting | Women’s trap team | Neeru Dhanda, Manisha Keer, Aashima Ahlawat | Silver |
| Archery | Women’s compound team | Jyothi Surekha Vennam, Prithika Pradeep, Chikitha Taniparthi | Gold |
| Archery | Compound mixed team | Chikitha Taniparthi and Sahil Jadhav | Gold |
| Athletics | Women’s 4x400m relay | India women’s relay team | Gold |
| Weightlifting | Women’s 49kg | Mirabai Chanu | Silver |
| Squash | Women’s singles | Anahat Singh | Silver |
| Shooting | Women’s 10m air rifle | Elavenil Valarivan | Silver |
| Mixed martial arts | Women’s traditional -60kg | Suchika Tariyal | Bronze |
| Squash | Women’s team | India women’s team | Bronze |
This is a selection of the standout results rather than a complete list. Medal counts change daily, so check the official tally for the latest numbers.
Neeru Dhanda: India’s first individual gold of the Games
Shooter Neeru Dhanda has been one of the stars of the tournament. She won the women’s trap gold with an Asian-record score, becoming India’s first individual gold medallist at Aichi-Nagoya. Earlier the same day, she was part of the silver-medal trap team with Manisha Keer and Aashima Ahlawat. She then added another gold in the trap mixed team event with Kynan Chenai, taking her to two golds and three medals in total.
The teams that delivered: cricket, kabaddi and archery
Women’s cricket
The women’s tournament was played as a straight knockout, and India came through it unbeaten to take gold. Sri Lanka took silver and Pakistan took bronze. If you follow the rivalry, read our earlier piece on the India vs Pakistan clash at the Asian Games 2026.
Women’s kabaddi
India’s women’s kabaddi team also won gold on 26 September, adding to the country’s early gold rush.
Compound archery
The compound archers swept all three team events in one day. In the women’s final, Jyothi Surekha Vennam, Prithika Pradeep and Chikitha Taniparthi beat China 238-234, a score that matched the world record, to retain the title. Taniparthi and Sahil Jadhav’s mixed-team gold also secured India a quota place for the LA 2028 Olympics.
Mirabai Chanu’s return to the Asian Games podium
Olympic silver medallist Mirabai Chanu won silver in the women’s 49kg weightlifting category, her maiden Asian Games medal. According to Olympics.com’s tally, it is India’s first Asian Games weightlifting medal since Bangkok 1998.
Beyond the golds
Women have also added medals across a wide spread of sports. Anahat Singh took squash singles silver, Elavenil Valarivan won silver in the 10m air rifle, and Suchika Tariyal won India’s first Asian Games medal in mixed martial arts with a traditional -60kg bronze. The women’s squash team added bronze on 1 October, and the women’s relay squad won India’s only athletics gold so far in the 4x400m.
Not every campaign ended on the podium. In judo, Yamini Mourya and Inunganbi Takhellambam were knocked out at the quarter-final and repechage stage, and India’s women’s rugby sevens team opened with a defeat to Hong Kong, China. The India women’s hockey team reached the final, and the result was still pending when this article was written. To know more about one of the faces of Indian women’s hockey, see our profile of Sushila Chanu’s 262-cap journey.
Why this matters for women’s sport in India
Medals are one measure, but visibility matters too. These results come after India’s women’s cricket team won the 2025 Women’s World Cup, and they reinforce a trend: women’s events are no longer side stories in the medal count. For young girls choosing sports like shooting, archery or kabaddi, seeing Indian women win gold and set continental records makes those careers feel more possible. That is an opinion rather than a statistic, but it is a point many coaches and athletes themselves make.
What is next
The Asian Games end on 4 October, so more finals are still to come. After that, the Asian Para Games run from 18 to 24 October in Aichi-Nagoya, with 41 women among India’s 121 competitors. If you want more sport coverage, see how PV Sindhu and Satwik-Chirag’s BWF World Championships draw shaped up.
Frequently asked questions
Which Indian women have won gold at the Asian Games 2026?
So far, gold medals have come from the women’s cricket team, the women’s kabaddi team, shooter Neeru Dhanda, the women’s compound archery team, and the women’s 4x400m relay team.
Who won India’s first individual gold at Aichi-Nagoya?
Neeru Dhanda, who won the women’s trap with an Asian-record score.
Where are the Asian Games 2026 being held?
In Aichi Prefecture and Nagoya, Japan, from 19 September to 4 October 2026.
How many medals has India won?
As of 1 October, Olympics.com listed 63 medals including 10 golds. The tally changes daily.
This article was last updated on 1 October 2026. Medal counts and results may change as the Games continue.
