Star Indian athletes Thulasimathi Murugesan and Manasi Joshi win gold medals at the Asian Para Games 2026Scroll down to read the full story.
Published: October 23, 2026, 5:36 PM IST
Share Article
https://www.india.com/sports/others/indias-thulasimathi-murugesan-and-manasi-joshi-win-gold-medals-at-the-asian-para-games-2026-8538594/
Thulasimathi Murugesan and Manasi Joshi win gold for India at the Asian Para Games 2026 (Image – X)
India’s Thulasimathi Murugesan and Manasi Joshi displayed their impressive performance for India at the Asian Para Games 2026Both athletes succeeded in winning the gold medal in the Women’s Doubles SL3-SU5 category.
They faced China’s Qiuxia Yang and Zuxian Xiao, who are World ChampionsThe duo of Thulasimathi Murugesan and Manasi Joshi defeated them in straight games, 21-16 and 21-13 to win this gold medal.
Not only this, Thulasimathi Murugesan and Manasi Joshi also upgraded their silver from the previous edition to gold.
When the day began, Thulasimathi Murugesan teamed up with star athlete Nitesh KumarBoth the athletes showed their brilliance, which helped them bag a silver medal for the accountThey suffered a defeat against Indonesia’s Leani Ratri Oktila and Hikmat Ramdani in the final 21-11, 19-21, 14-21.
Meanwhile, Thulasimathi Murugesan also managed to bag a silver medal for India in the women’s singles SU5 after suffering a defeat to China’s Yang in the final.
On the other hand, India’s Sivakumar and Nitesh Kumar also delivered their explosive performance for India to clinch a gold medal in men’s singles SL3 and SL4 categoriesNitesh Kumar defeated Pramod Bhagat, who won gold in the 2018 and 2022 editions, 21-18, 21-16 in the all-India final between two Paralympic champions.
Nithya Sre Sumathy Sivan won the silver medal in the women’s singles SH6 finalShe lost to China’s Li Fengmei in straight games, with a score of 12-21, 13-21.
Para-badminton players are classified into various categories based on their physical conditionsSL3 is for players with serious leg problems who play half courtSL4 is for players with leg problems but can walk and run with better balancePlayers with problems with their arms play in SU5, smaller players play in SH6.
India had a great run at the Asian Para Games 2023 in Hangzhou, ChinaIndian players won 111 medals, including 29 gold, 31 silver and 51 bronze medalsThis was India’s best-ever result at the Games, and the country finished fifth in the medal table.
At the Asian Para Games 2026 in Aichi-Nagoya, India are in fourth place with 106 medalsThe total includes 28 gold, 34 silver and 44 bronze medals.
