Asian Games 2026: Sawan Barwal Wins Marathon Silver, Ends India’s 44-Year Wait

By Thetripurapost Desk, Aichi-Nagoya
Sep 26, 2026
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India finally returned to the Asian Games men’s marathon podium after 44 years as Sawan Barwal produced a record-breaking performance to win the silver medal at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games 2026 on Saturday.

Barwal completed the marathon in 2 hours, 11 minutes and 37 seconds, registering a personal best as well as a new Indian national record. His historic performance also ended India’s long wait for a marathon medal at the Asian Games since the 1982 Delhi edition.

Japan’s Ichitaka Yamashita claimed the gold medal with a time of 2:10:49, while China’s Peiyou Feng secured bronze in 2:12:13.

Sawan Barwal Breaks His Own National Record

Barwal’s silver-medal run was significant beyond the podium finish. His time of 2:11:37 improved his own Indian national record by 21 seconds.

He had established the previous national mark earlier this year with a time of 2:11:58. The latest performance in Nagoya therefore gave the Indian distance runner another national benchmark on one of the biggest stages in Asian athletics.

The Indian athlete remained among the leading runners for much of the race before making an aggressive move during the closing stages. He pushed into the lead group after the 35-kilometre mark and made his challenge for the podium count.

His final surge secured India’s first Asian Games marathon medal since the 1982 Games in New Delhi.

India Eyes Two Kabaddi Gold Medals Today

India has another major opportunity to add to its Asian Games medal haul as both the men’s and women’s kabaddi teams enter their respective finals against Iran.

The women’s final is scheduled for 9:30 am IST, while the men’s gold-medal match will begin at 2:30 pm IST. Both Indian teams reached the title clash after progressing through the knockout stage on Friday.

Kabaddi is being played at the Tokai Citizens Gymnasium in Aichi Prefecture during the 2026 Asian Games, with both Indian teams entering the tournament as defending champions from the 2022 Hangzhou edition.

Tejaswin Shankar Remains Second in Decathlon

India’s Tejaswin Shankar continued his decathlon campaign with a strong position in the standings, although he could not improve his long-jump score after fouling on his final attempt.

Thowfeeq Noushad, meanwhile, produced a 7.37-metre effort in his final long-jump attempt to collect 904 points.

Shankar was placed second with 1,807 points before the shot put, while Thowfeeq stood joint-fourth with 1,759 points. The decathlon shot-put event is scheduled for 7:55 am IST.

22 Gold Medals on the Line at Asian Games 2026

Saturday’s Asian Games programme features a packed schedule across multiple disciplines, with 22 gold medals up for grabs.

Athletics has the largest number of gold-medal opportunities, while canoe sprint is also scheduled to feature several medal events. India will be involved in athletics, kabaddi, badminton, archery, squash and several other disciplines during the day.

For Indian fans, the spotlight will remain firmly on the kabaddi finals after Barwal’s historic marathon performance gave the country another memorable moment at the Aichi-Nagoya Games.