What India's 39-medal haul at the 2026 Commonwealth Games says about Indian athletes

India's relationship with sport has never really been quiet. From cricket to athletics, this is a country that has always found its legends and held onto them tightly. So when Glasgow closed out the 2026 Commonwealth Games with India sitting fourth overall, 39 medals richer, we were all filled with awe and triumph.

This left us admiring not just the medals, but the spirit behind them. Glasgow didn't just hand India a medal tally; it marked a milestone for Indian sport. Take Neeraj Chopra, for example. Rather than letting injury push him to the sidelines, he made a remarkable comeback, delivering a spectacular performance in the javelin to win silver.

Tejaswin Shankar broke the curse for India, winning the country's first-ever medal in the decathlon, an athletics event that tests an athlete's true resilience. But what many people aren't aware of is the agony he went through in his main event. He had to withdraw from the high jump due to an injury, but two days later, he delivered a remarkable performance.

"We come from a country where India didn't win a medal for years, and Beijing became a turning point," says Vikrant Gupta, senior managing editor at Aaj Tak/Sports Tak. "But now, many years later, India has started doing well, though there is still room."

The golden generation 

There's a clear shift within this generation of athletes, too. Gulveer Singh winning two medals in a single edition of the Commonwealth Games has paved the way for a new generation of Indian distance runners. What started as little more than a path into the military has turned into something the whole country can be proud of.

 

Saikhom Mirabai Chanu added to her own legacy with a hat-trick of Commonwealth Games gold medals, cementing herself as one of India's most consistent champions. Alongside her, Lovlina Borgohain brought home a silver in boxing for India, part of what turned out to be India's strongest showing in the sport at any Commonwealth Games.

The boxing contingent alone brought home 10 medals, including a remarkable seven golds, making it the country's single biggest medal-contributing sport at Glasgow.

"Boxing has become the silver lining and has given hope for the Asian Games," says Gupta.

Where courage found its podium

Then there are the stories that remind us why we fell in love with sport in the first place.

Jhandu Kumar won India its first medal of the 2026 Commonwealth Games: a bronze in para powerlifting. But the medal itself is almost the smaller part of his story. Not long ago, he was selling vegetables on the street and driving an e-rickshaw to get by during the pandemic. There was no clear path from there to a podium in Glasgow. But he beat the odds and made his way through. 

Sharmila Dhankar's story is one of resilience too. She contracted polio at two, survived an abusive first marriage, and started again, this time with a husband who believed in her. At 40, she threw her way to gold in the women's shot put F57, becoming India's first-ever Commonwealth Games para-athletics gold medallist and ending the country's 20-year wait in the discipline.

Sport in India has changed remarkably over the last decade.

"Many athletes are now becoming aware of the professional side of sport. Private scholarships, better infrastructure, and improved funding are allowing them to play professionally, which is helping them work toward their goals," says Dr Pradyumna Tembhekar, team doctor of the Indian volleyball team.

Add to that the rise in international exposure and corporate sponsorships, and it becomes clear why young athletes today can train full-time instead of juggling sport with survival.

Building the athletes India deserves

It isn't just the athletes who've changed; it's also the place they train in. Not long ago, world-class training facilities felt like something India could only aspire to, a distant benchmark set by countries with deeper pockets and older sporting infrastructure. Today, that gap is closing, and athletes are training on better tracks, under better coaches, with access to recovery science that simply didn't exist for the generation before them.

"One of the biggest reasons Indian athletes are performing well is access to better infrastructure, good coaches, and a holistic, interdisciplinary team," says Dr Tembhekar.

As someone who once lived inside this world of athletics myself, watching these changes unfold feels personal. It feels like just the beginning. With the Commonwealth Games behind them, India's athletes are already looking ahead to the Asian Games. "The Asian Games will be the true reflection," says Gupta, of just how far this generation has really come.

Lead Image: Getty Images

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