Indian Archers Shine at Asian Games 2026, Surfing Campaign Concludes

Indian Archers Progress to Quarterfinals

Dhiraj Bommadevara and Neeraj Chauhan, two Indian archers, have successfully moved on to the quarterfinals of the men's recurve individual event at the Asian Games 2026. This achievement came after they secured contrasting victories in the Round of 16 on Tuesday. Dhiraj, the top seed, triumphed over Cheng Hsiang-Hui from Chinese Taipei with a score of 6-2, while Neeraj delivered an impressive performance, defeating South Korea's Olympic medallist Kim Je Deok 6-4, as reported by ESPN.

In the earlier Round of 32, Dhiraj had a dominant win against Girvin Garcia from the Philippines, finishing 6-0. However, his match against Cheng was more challenging, yet he maintained his composure to clinch the victory. Dhiraj is set to face Uzbekistan's Amirkon Sadikov in the quarterfinals on October 3.

Neeraj's victory over Kim was particularly noteworthy, as Kim had qualified second in the ranking round. Neeraj started strong, taking a 3-1 lead, but Kim fought back to equalize at 3-3. After a tied set, the match was left to the final set, where Neeraj held his nerve to secure a 6-4 win. He will compete against Bhutan's Dorji Lam in the quarterfinals.

Surfing Campaign Concludes

India's surfing journey came to an end when Kishore Kumar Anbarasu lost in the men's shortboard quarterfinals to Toby Espejon from the Philippines. Kishore's top two scores from eight waves were 3.00 and 2.37, totaling 5.37, while Espejon achieved a score of 8.53.

Focus Shifts to Athletics and Boxing Medals

On Tuesday, the athletics events present India with additional medal prospects. Gulveer Singh is aiming for his third medal in the men's 5000m final after previously winning silver in both the 1500m and 10,000m events. Avinash Sable will also participate in the 5000m, and three Indian relay teams are set to compete in medal races, including the men's and women's 4x400m and the mixed 4x100m finals.

In boxing, athletes Parveen Hooda, Ankush Panghal, and Narender Berwal are set to compete in their semi-finals, each guaranteed at least a bronze medal. Parveen will face China's Li Shu in the women's 65kg semi-final, Ankush will take on Uzbekistan's Fazliddin Erkinboev in the men's 80kg category, and Narender will meet Kazakhstan's Aibek Oralbay in the men's +90kg bout.

Additionally, India will participate in various sports including shooting, squash, volleyball, tennis, cycling, canoe slalom, sport climbing, and kurash on Tuesday.