Neeru Dhanda named India’s women's flag bearer for Asian Games closing ceremony

Neeru Dhanda will serve as India’s women’s flag bearer at the Asian Games closing ceremony in Nagoya on Sunday, October 4, 2026, after finishing the shooting competition with two gold medals and a team silver.

The 27-year-old trap shooter returned to India a day after winning her third medal — a gold in the trap mixed team event alongside Kynan Chenai — and is scheduled to fly back to Nagoya on Saturday morning, October 3, 2026, to lead the Indian contingent at the ceremony.

“She is returning to Nagoya tomorrow morning to be the woman flag bearer. The decision on the male flag bearer will be taken tomorrow,” deputy chef de mission Anjali Bhagwat said on Friday, October 2, 2026. Bhagwat made the remarks while at the Gifu Prefectural Green Stadium to watch the women’s hockey final between India and China.

Dhanda’s podium finishes in Nagoya included the women’s individual trap gold and a silver in the women’s team event, where she combined with Manisha Keer and Aashima Ahlawat. She partnered with Kynan Chenai to secure the trap mixed team gold on the penultimate day of the shooting competition, taking her medal tally to three.

Her two golds and a team silver placed her among India’s most successful competitors at the continental event, a campaign described in the report as historic for the shooter. Earlier this year she had also won the women’s trap gold at the ISSF World Cup in Lonato.

Dhanda will rejoin the Indian contingent in Nagoya on Saturday morning, October 3, 2026, to lead the team at the closing ceremony on Sunday. The selection process for the male flag bearer will be completed the following day, according to Bhagwat’s statement.