Pincky Balhara secures bronze in women's 78kg kurash at Asian Games in Nagoya

Pincky Balhara secured a bronze medal in the women's 78kg kurash at the Asian Games in Nagoya on September 28, 2026, after a 0-5 defeat to South Korea's Sumin Mo in the semifinals. The result followed a Dakki (penalty) against Balhara and a Yonbosh point awarded to Mo.

Balhara became the first Indian to win two Asian Games medals in kurash; she had earlier taken silver in the women's 52kg at the Jakarta Games in 2018 when the discipline debuted at the continental event. Malaprabha Jadhav was the other Indian medallist in 2018. The 27-year-old represents Delhi.

In the semifinal against Mo, Balhara finished 0-5, with the Dakki penalty contributing to the margin. The match report records Mo as having earned a Yonbosh point during the bout.

Balhara reached the last four after a 3-0 quarterfinal victory over Garam Lim, registering the decisive score through a Chala while Lim failed to score. She had received a bye in the pre-quarterfinal round.

Describing the semifinal, Balhara said: "I got injured in the quarterfinal match and got hit on the knee. My opponent in the quarterfinal was also a Korean. So, my semifinal opponent knew that I got injured on my right knee. I was attacking, but she was hitting me there (on her knee) again and again. So, I lost on penalty," said a sobbing Balhara from Neb Sarai in Delhi. "This is only my second bout in 78kg and before that I competed in Asian Championships in Uzbekistan in May. That was my first in 78kg." she said.

Balhara trains at the Baba Ganga Nath Judo and Kurash Academy in Munirka, Delhi, which is run by her maternal uncle Samundar Tokas, described in the report as a well known judo and kurash coach. She began practising judo at the age of nine.

Kurash is described in the report as a traditional Central Asian martial art, particularly associated with Uzbekistan, contested by two athletes wearing green and blue jackets whose objective is to throw the opponent to the ground. If an opponent is thrown onto the back, victory is declared; throws onto the side score points, with lower scores for throws onto the belly or side; ground techniques, chokeholds, and joint locks are prohibited and victory is determined solely by standing throws.