Indian Athletes Face Heartbreak With Narrow Misses at Asian Games

Indian track and field athletes suffered a series of narrow misses at the Nagoya Asian Games, leaving the country still searching for its first gold medal in athletics at the event.

Long Jump

Ancy Sojan secured a silver medal in the women's long jump after holding the lead for much of the competition. Her best jump of 6.53 metres was beaten in the final attempt by China's Yingying Huang, who recorded 6.55 metres. Ancy's fellow jumper Shaili Singh missed out on the podium entirely, finishing fourth with 6.42 metres after China's Mengyi Tan jumped 6.46 metres in the final round.

High Jump and Decathlon

In the men's high jump, Sarvesh Kushare took home the silver medal after failing to clear 2.28 metres, a height lower than his personal best of 2.31 metres. The absence of top jumper Mutaz Barshim had created an opening for gold, leaving the contest between Kushare and Taiwan's Chao-hsuan Fu. Meanwhile, Tejaswin Shankar won a bronze medal in the men's decathlon with 7,934 points across 10 events, but expressed strong dissatisfaction with his final standing.

Context

These near misses highlight the fine margin between contending for medals and converting that position into first-place finishes on the international sports stage. India's overall gold count at the Games stands at four, trailing significantly behind countries like China, with shooting also failing to match its previous medal returns.