India’s athletes arrived at the Commonwealth Games after qualifying through competitions held in the peak of the Indian summer, where temperatures often soared towards 40 degrees Celsius. In Glasgow, however, they have been forced to deal with conditions at the opposite end of the spectrum, with persistent rain and cold weather making competition difficult.
India’s top women’s steeplechase runner Parul Chaudhary felt the impact of the conditions during the women’s 3000m steeplechase final on Wednesday, finishing fifth as the rain continued to fall in Glasgow.
The cold was so intense that Chaudhary said she struggled to feel her fingers inside her spikes while running.
“For steeplechase conditions, the weather was quite difficult. The weather was cold. When I was running, my fingers were frozen in my spikes, so I couldn’t run,” Parul said after the race.
Commonwealth Games 2026 July 29: Highlights | Full schedule
The Indian had hoped to improve on her personal best, but the conditions made that target difficult to achieve.
“I wanted to better my best timing, but there were no conditions. Now I am ready for the Asian Games,” she added.
The extreme weather has presented a sharp contrast for India’s athletes, many of whom qualified for the Commonwealth Games through domestic competitions held in India’s summer heat.
For Chaudhary, though, there is still another opportunity to make her mark in Glasgow.
The Indian will return to action in the women’s 5000m final, where she will look to put her steeplechase disappointment behind her and finish the Commonwealth Games on a stronger note.
INDIA SCHEDULE FOR JULY 30 AT CWG 2026 (ALL TIMES IST)
- 2:40 PM: Athletics – Tejaswin Shankar in Men’s Decathlon 100m
- 2:55 PM: Athletics – Neeraj Chopra, Rohit Yadav and Yash Vir Singh in Men’s Javelin Throw Qualifying
- 3:20 PM: Athletics – Tejaswin Shankar in Men’s Decathlon Long Jump
- 4:55 PM: Athletics – Praveen Chithravel and Selva Prabhu in Men’s Triple Jump Qualifying
- 5:07 PM: Track Cycling – Ronaldo Singh Laitonjam, David Beckham Elkotohchoongo and Rojit Singh Yanglem in Men’s Team Sprint Qualifying
- 5:10 PM: Athletics – Tejaswin Shankar in Men’s Decathlon Shot Put
- 5:40 PM: Athletics – Vishal TK in Men’s 400m Semifinal
- 6:30 PM: Weightlifting – Martina Devi Maibam in Women’s 86+kg Final (Medal Event)
- 7:30 PM: Lawn Bowls – India (Dinesh Kumar, Navneet Singh) vs Botswana in Men’s Pairs Sectional Play
- 8:55 PM: Lawn Bowls – Nayanmoni Saikia vs Malaysia’s Emma Firyana Saroji in Women’s Singles Sectional Play
- 10:50 PM: Track Cycling – Ronaldo Singh Laitonjam, David Beckham Elkotohchoongo and Rojit Singh Yanglem in Men’s Team Sprint Final (Subject to Qualification)
- 11:00 PM: Weightlifting – Lovepreet Singh in Men’s 110+kg Final (Medal Event)
- 11:30 PM: Athletics – Tajinderpal Singh Toor and Samardeep Singh Gill in Men’s Shot Put Final (Medal Event)
- 11:37 PM: Athletics – Animesh Kujur in Men’s 200m Semifinal
- 11:38 PM: Athletics – Tejaswin Shankar in Men’s Decathlon High Jump
- 1:10 AM: Athletics – Seema Kaliramna and Nidhi Rani in Women’s Discus Throw Final (Medal Event)
- 1:30 AM: Athletics – Tejaswin Shankar in Men’s Decathlon 400m
- 1:48 AM: Athletics – Parul Chaudhary in Women’s 5000m Final (Medal Event)
– Ends
