India’s Manu Francis and Prince Kurisinkal Noble take men’s skiff silver at Asian Games in Gamagori City

India’s Manu Francis and Prince Kurisinkal Noble won the men’s skiff silver medal at the Asian Games sailing competition in Gamagori City on Thursday, October 1, 2026. The Indian pair finished the series with 23 points after nine races, behind China’s Wen Zaiding and Liu Tian who totalled 16 points.

The 31-year-old Francis and 30-year-old Noble, first cousins from Ernakulam, competed across nine races in the men’s skiff opening series where the lowest aggregate score determines the standings. Points are awarded by finishing position in each race, with a first place earning one point; India claimed victory in race 3 and recorded second-place finishes in races 1, 5 and 9. China produced four race wins to secure the gold medal.

Noble, identified in reports as the son of a fisherman who died during the 2018 catastrophic flood in Kerala, said the medal had special significance in his debut Asian Games. “It was our first Asian Games and winning a medal is very special. It was a tough competition and we somehow won the silver,” Noble told PTI after the final.

Francis described the conditions and the pair’s strengths and weaknesses, saying: “It was very tough actually. It was windy. We are not very comfortable with windy conditions. But we survived and somehow won a silver.” He added: “In light (windy) conditions, we are pretty good. We train in India, and in India almost every time it is a light wind.”

On their overall feelings about the result and their preparation, Francis said: “We don’t feel much about it. Happy and not that happy. Because we could have won the gold.” He also reflected on their race-day expectations and technical limits: “Initially, we didn’t know we were in the silver medal position. We thought we were fighting for bronze, so it was lucky. We lack good technique in these kinds of windy conditions. It was very choppy. But in the last race, the boat was flying. So we were happy about that. "But we need to work more on (sailing in) heavy windy conditions.”

Francis noted their familial partnership helped coordination on board, saying: “We are cousins, our mothers and we grew up together. We understand each other and that makes it easier to coordinate.” Both sailors train at the Army Yachting Node in Mumbai, and a Sports Authority of India profile states they developed an interest in sailing young, trained at the National Sailing School in Bhopal and the Muziris Yachting Club in Kerala, and earlier combined to win a bronze medal in the Asian Sailing Championships.

The bronze in the men’s skiff went to Hong Kong’s Akira Luke Sakai and Russel Aylsworth, who finished the series on 24 points. In the women’s skiff event, the Indian duo Harshita Tomar and Shital Verma ended fourth and last with 26 points, while Japan won gold with 11 points, Hong Kong took silver on 16 and China claimed bronze on 23.

The nine-race series concluded with China first on 16 points, India second on 23 and Hong Kong third on 24, finalising the medal positions in the men’s skiff at the Asian Games.