Indian Women's 4x400m Relay Team Celebrated After Historic Asian Games Gold
Warm Welcome for Gold Medalists at Delhi Airport
New Delhi, October 1: Emotions soared as India's women's 4x400m relay team, comprising Kiran Pahal, Prachi Choudhary, and MR Poovamma, returned to a jubilant reception at Delhi Airport. The athletes were greeted with garlands, cheers, and embraces from their families, celebrating their remarkable achievement at the Asian Games 2026 in Aichi-Nagoya.
The quartet, which also included Vithya Ramraj, secured the first athletics gold medal for India at the Asian Games 2026, finishing the women's 4x400m relay final in a time of 3:29.69. Bahrain took home the silver with a time of 3:30.21, while China earned the bronze at 3:31.02.
For both Prachi and Vithya, this gold medal was their second at the Games, as Prachi had previously won bronze in the women's 400m event, and Vithya had secured bronze in the women's 400m hurdles.
Upon their return from Japan, Kiran Pahal shared her feelings with the media, expressing that hearing the national anthem after their victory filled the team with pride. She dedicated the medal to the Athletics Federation of India (AFI), the government, her family, coach, and the entire nation.
“It’s an incredible feeling when the national anthem plays. We hadn’t won a medal before this, and hearing it for our gold filled us with immense pride. I dedicate this medal to the Athletics Federation of India, the government, my family, my coach, and the entire nation,” she stated.
Prachi Choudhary also expressed her joy over the relay team's success, stating their next goal is to secure gold at the World Championships. “I feel so happy, truly overjoyed, especially since our team has won its first gold medal. Our next target is to win gold at the World Championships,” she remarked.
MR Poovamma expressed her pride in winning gold, especially since India had not previously achieved this in athletics. She thanked her family, the Athletics Federation of India, the Sports Authority of India (SAI), and both central and state governments for their support. Poovamma hails from Karnataka.
“I am feeling very proud because in athletics there was no gold medal, so we wanted to win this medal very badly here and hear the national anthem. I am thankful to God, my parents, my husband, the Athletics Federation of India, the Sports Authority of India, the Central Government, and the State Government for helping me reach this level,” she said.