With the Asian Games entering the final stretch, India’s declining gold medal numbers tell an uncomfortable story and offer a sharp reality check. Of the 28 golds India won in Hangzhou three years ago, 20 have already slipped away in Aichi-Nagoya, across shooting, athletics, archery, badminton, equestrian, squash and tennis. The sharpest contrast comes in individual events. In Hangzhou, India won nine individual gold medals across shooting, athletics and archery. None of those have been defended and, in some events, India was not even able to make the final rounds in the ongoing edition.In 2023, India produced a historic 106-medal haul: 28 gold, 38 silver and 40 bronze. Shooting alone delivered seven golds and athletics six, while archery completed a clean sweep of all five compound golds.Asian Games Full Coverage | Schedule | Medal TallyThree years later, India has lost all seven shooting golds it won in Hangzhou and all six in athletics. In archery, the three team titles have survived, but neither of the individual ones. In squash, the country has lost both its titles from 2023 in the men’s team event and mixed doubles. The Hangzhou golds in badminton men’s doubles, team dressage and tennis mixed doubles have also not been retained.As of Thursday, India has won 10 gold medals at Aichi-Nagoya, with men’s hockey and cricket still carrying title-defence possibilities. India’s overall medal tally has crossed 60 and the country is eighth overall, but it is staring at a far lower haul than at Hangzhou. For perspective, China has so far won 154 gold medals and 288 medals overall.Particularly worrying is the disappearance of gold medals that India had already established as its continental benchmark.
A different gold-medal profile
India’s campaign in Aichi-Nagoya has produced its share of memorable performances, new champions and hard-earned podium finishes. But with just two days left for the continental event to wind up, the larger picture is difficult to ignore: India has not been able to build on the gold-medal gains of Hangzhou.The six successful defences have come in men’s and women’s kabaddi, all three compound archery team events and women’s cricket. In Aichi-Nagoya, among the 10 gold medals won by India so far, only one has come in an individual event: Neeru Dhanda’s historic women’s trap triumph.The rest have come through team, relay or mixed formats. That is a substantial shift in the profile of India’s gold-medal success.
Two more chances
India is not finished. The men’s hockey team has reached the gold-medal match after narrowly beating Pakistan 4-3 in the semifinal. The men’s cricket team has also reached the final, where it will face Pakistan after beating Sri Lanka by 124 runs in the semifinal.If India wins these two, the Hangzhou-to-Aichi-Nagoya comparison will improve from six successful defences to eight. But even a two-from-two finish would leave the basic statistic untouched: 20 of the Hangzhou golds would still have been lost.That is the number that should concern Indian sport administrators.It is not merely a case of one or two champions falling short. It points to a much broader problem of converting a successful Asian Games cycle into sustained dominance.The athletes who have won medals in Japan deserve full credit. The question is different: what happened between a record 28-gold campaign in Hangzhou and a Games in which the majority of those titles have not been retained?The answer cannot be found merely in the final medal table.Hangzhou demonstrated that India could win 28 golds. Aichi-Nagoya is demonstrating how difficult it is to make those gains sustainable.From 28 golds to 10: India’s Asian Games slide offers a stark reality check