Prime Minister Narendra Modi met India’s Commonwealth Games 2026 medallists and congratulated them for their performances at the Glasgow Games, while urging the country to continue supporting its athletes across sporting disciplines.
Modi interacted with the medal winners and praised their hard work, determination and commitment to representing India on the international stage. He also stressed the importance of encouraging athletes and building a sporting culture where young people are inspired to take up sport.
“Jo Khelega Woh Khilega” has been one of Modi’s recurring messages on the importance of sports and greater participation among India’s youth. The Prime Minister has previously used the phrase while speaking about India’s changing sporting culture and the need to create more opportunities for young athletes.
The result was particularly impressive given that several sports India traditionally relies on for Commonwealth Games medals were not part of the Glasgow programme. Wrestling, badminton, shooting and hockey were absent, but Indian athletes still found plenty of success across boxing, weightlifting, judo, athletics and para-sports.
The Glasgow campaign also produced several historic moments, with India’s boxers leading the medal charge while Mirabai Chanu, Gulveer Singh and the country’s para athletes added significant highlights to the contingent’s performance.
HOW BOXING LEFT INDIA’S MEDAL CHARGE
Boxing emerged as India’s biggest medal contributor, with the contingent winning 10 medals, including seven golds. It was India’s best-ever boxing performance at a Commonwealth Games, with Indian women particularly impressive as they claimed five of the seven gold medals.
Judo also delivered a historic campaign. Asmita Dey and Harsh Singh won gold medals, giving India two judo golds at the same edition of the Commonwealth Games for the first time. India finished with four medals in the sport.
Weightlifting remained another dependable source of success, with Indian lifters collecting eight medals. Mirabai Chanu added another gold to her decorated career, making it her third consecutive Commonwealth Games title.
GULVEER, PARA STARS ADDED TO INDIA’S HAUL
Gulveer Singh was among India’s standout performers in athletics. He won silver in the 10,000m and bronze in the 5,000m, becoming the first Indian track-and-field athlete to win two medals at the same Commonwealth Games.
The country’s para athletes also produced a strong showing, returning with seven medals.
Sharmila Dhankar created history by winning India’s first Commonwealth Games gold in para athletics, taking the women’s F57 shot put title. Dilip Mahadu Gavit also secured gold in the men’s 100m T47 event.
India’s fourth-place finish came despite competing without several of its traditional medal-winning disciplines. The campaign instead showcased the country’s growing depth in sports that may have a bigger role to play in India’s future Commonwealth Games campaigns.
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