India sends 501 athletes to Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games as competition opens on September 19, 2026
India will field 501 athletes at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games, which open at the Paloma Mizuho Stadium on Saturday (September 19, 2026). The team will look to shooter Manu Bhaker, following her exploits at the Paris Olympics 2024, to spearhead its medal challenge.
The quadrennial event, which began in India and which the country hopes to host again in near future for the third time, features 259 medal events across 36 disciplines with 356 medals on offer. India’s contingent will aim to match the 106 medals won at the previous edition in Hangzhou, a target that would require roughly a fifth of the athletes to finish on the podium. The record haul in Hangzhou has raised expectations, and performances in Aichi-Nagoya are being framed as a practical assessment and a template for course correction as India pursues an ambitious target of reaching the top-10 in the Olympic medal table by 2036.
Shooters and track and field athletes, who together contributed almost half of India’s medals in Hangzhou, are among the disciplines under the closest scrutiny. Manu Bhaker and shotputter Tajinderpal Singh Toor will serve as India’s flagbearers on Saturday. Tajinderpal Singh Toor, a two-time Asian Games champion, arrives aiming to defend his title.
The shooting squad combines youth and experience: rifle shooters Tillottam Sen and Ashi Chouksey and pistol shooters Esha Singh and Suruchi Phogat represent the younger contingent, while Rahi Sarnobat provides experience; Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar and Anish Bhanwal bring a mix of both. Select shooters are expected to carry a significant portion of medal hopes given their contributions in the previous Games.
Athletics will field a 74-member contingent but will do so without Neeraj Chopra, who is out with injury. The burden among field competitors will fall on Tejaswin Shankar, Murali Sreeshankar and Tajinderpal Singh Toor, while Avinash Sable’s return to competition and Gulveer Singh are identified as the track athletes most likely to contend for medals, including gold.
On the courts and mats, P.V. Sindhu will seek a long-elusive Asian Games title and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy with Chirag Shetty aim for greater consistency after a topsy-turvy season and injury concerns in their title defence. Women boxers and the compound archery squad are also expected to contribute to the medal tally, and Mirabai Chanu will bid for her first Asian Games medal 12 years after her debut in Incheon and three years after a shock exit.
Team events carry qualification and reputational stakes: hockey will be a focal point with tickets to LA28 at stake for both men and women. The men’s recent World Cup outings are unlikely to alter expectations substantially and the side must guard against complacency; for the women, China is viewed as the principal challenge but recent form gives hope. Cricket will attract attention but is expected to lack major suspense unless a title-defending side falters, with the men, in particular, seeking legitimacy after their 2023 final against Afghanistan was declared on the basis of ranking after being washed out. The men’s kabaddi team, captained by Sunil Kumar, aim to show their previous success was not a fluke and put the rancour-filled final against Iran behind them.
Competition begins on September 19 and the results in Aichi-Nagoya will provide a concrete measure of where Indian sport stands after Hangzhou and supply actionable guidance for adjustments as the country works toward its long-term Olympic goal for 2036.