​Podium finish: on India at the Glasgow Commonwealth Games

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In the truncated Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, India performed well, exceeding expectations and retaining fourth place behind developed nations such as Australia, England, and Canada, despite a sharp drop in medals from 61 to 39, including 13 gold, 17 silver, and nine bronze. The gold rush on the penultimate day, powered by the spectacular performance of the boxers who won seven gold and three silver medals, improved India’s position. While some weight classes had weaker draws, several categories posed strong challenges. Propelled by determination and hard work, five women boxers — Sakshi Chaudhary, Preeti Pawar, Jaismine Lamboria, Priya Ghanghas, and Arundhati Choudhary — and two men, Sachin Siwach and Ankush Panghal, ensured India’s best-ever showing of 10 medals, three more than that in the last edition. The women boxers’ fearless approach established them as a force to reckon with. India won 16 medals in athletics and para-athletics, with notable contributions from para-athletes Dilip Gavit, Soman Rana, and Sharmila Dhankar. In world-class fields, the country’s athletes won 10 medals compared to eight in Birmingham 2022. Neeraj Chopra recovered from injury to take a creditable silver and lead the country to twin-medal glory in javelin along with Yashvir Singh and underlined India’s rising status as a javelin powerhouse. Other moments to cherish included triple jumpers Praveen Chithravel and Selva Prabhu’s twin podium finishes, Gulveer Singh becoming the first Indian to medal in 5000m and 10000m, Murali Sreeshankar winning his second straight long jump silver, Tejaswin Shankar claiming the country’s first-ever decathlon medal, and Sarvesh Kushare pocketing a high jump silver.

Asmita Dey and Harsh Singh sprang a surprise by winning the country’s first gold medals in judo, while Mirabai Chanu lived up to her billing to clinch her third successive gold medal. She led Indian lifters to a significant haul of eight medals. The country’s strong show, against an expectation of around 30 medals, helped the contingent leave Glasgow on a high as Ahmedabad prepares to host a bigger Games offering more medals in 2030. Indian athletes’ praiseworthy performance in Glasgow has raised hopes for the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games next month, where a bigger haul is expected from a wider range of disciplines. While India is capable of securing impressive medal collections at the Commonwealth and Asian Games, it needs to raise its level manifold to be counted among the best globally. Aspiring to host the 2036 Olympics, it must identify priority sports and invest in them to ensure a higher finish, even while waging a perennial war against doping.