Asian Games 2026: Neeru Dhanda wins women's individual trap gold

Neeru Dhanda won the women's individual trap gold at the Asian Games 2026 in Aichi-Nagoya on Tuesday, September 29. She is the first Indian woman to claim the title in this event.

India's previous individual Asian Games gold in trap came in the men's event at Bangkok 1978, when Randhir Singh clinched the title, creating a 48-year gap in individual trap golds for the country that Dhanda ended with her victory.

Dhanda posted a qualifying score of 118, the best in the field and shared with Qatar’s Ray Bassil. She hit 118 out of 125 targets in qualification. She was one of eight shooters to advance to the final from a field of 27 competitors.

In the team competition held earlier, Dhanda scored 118 out of 125 targets with rounds of 24, 24, 24, 23 and 23; Aashima Ahlawat added 106 and Manisha Keer contributed 104, giving India a combined total of 328. China took the team gold with 346 and Kuwait won bronze with 325.

Dhanda's recent results include beating Aashima Ahlawat 40-39 in the final of the second Shotgun National Trials in May 2025. In August 2025 she won individual and team gold at the Asian Shooting Championships in Shymkent, Kazakhstan. She and Vivaan Kapoor took mixed team bronze at the World Cup in Almaty in May 2026, and in July 2026 she won World Cup gold in Lonato, Italy, her first individual World Cup medal.

Neeru Dhanda was born on May 25, 2000, in Jind, Haryana, and took up shooting after being inspired by her cousin Lakshay Sheoran, who won silver in the men’s trap event at the 2018 Asian Games. She is a Naib Subedar in the Army, trains at Mhow in Madhya Pradesh and works with coach Peter Wilson.

With Dhanda's individual gold, India's gold count at the Asian Games rose from four to five. The gold was secured on Tuesday, September 29, in Aichi-Nagoya.