Baranica Elangovan secures historic pole vault bronze for India
Indian athlete Baranica Elangovan secured a historic bronze medal in the women's pole vault at the 2026 Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya. She cleared a height of 4.15 metres to finish joint-third with Polina Ivanova of Kazakhstan. Both competitors failed to cross the 4.25-metre mark and ultimately shared the third-place podium finish. This remarkable performance makes her India's first-ever Asian Games medallist in any pole vault event.
Historically, Indian athletes have struggled to reach the podium in technical field events like the pole vault at continental competitions. This breakthrough victory changes that narrative completely and brings India's overall medal count at these games to 23. This total currently includes two gold, nine silver, and 12 bronze medals.
Shooting teams delivered excellent results earlier on Friday. Kamaljeet and Suruchi Inder Singh claimed gold in the 10-metre air pistol mixed team event. Men’s 50-metre rifle 3 positions competitors Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar, Rudrankksh Patil, and Niraj Kumar added a team silver medal. Track star Gulveer clocked 28:29.38 to win silver in the men’s 10,000-metre race. Manpreet Kaur also earned bronze in the women’s shot put with her impressive 17.17-metre throw.
Table tennis pair Manush Shah and Diya Chitale captured a mixed doubles bronze following their semi-final match against China. Squash players Joshana Chinappa and Velavan Senthilkumar reached the mixed doubles semi-finals, guaranteeing another medal. Singles squash competitors Abhay Singh and Anahat Singh also advanced to their respective semi-finals. Men's and women's kabaddi teams reached their finals after defeating Thailand and Nepal. Meanwhile, the women's hockey team beat Japan 3-1 in Pool B.
Swimmer Rishabh Das finished sixth in the men’s 200-metre backstroke final. Weightlifter Seram Nirupama Devi claimed seventh place in the women’s 61-kilogram category. Boxer Preeti concluded her campaign in the round of 16 following a points defeat to Pang Chol Mi of North Korea.
With Inputs from Agency Threads and Image Courtesy: ANI
