Tejaswin Shankar rues missed chances after bronze in Nagoya decathlon
Tejaswin Shankar said he had missed opportunities for higher medals after taking bronze in the men's decathlon at the Asian Games in Nagoya, Japan on September 27, 2026. "It’s a lost opportunity for a gold and for a silver, here I am settling for a bronze," he said.
The 27-year-old former high jumper became a two-time Asian Games decathlon medallist and remains the only Indian to achieve that feat, finishing in Nagoya with 7924 points compared with the 7666 that earned him silver at the previous Games. Earlier this year he became the first Indian to breach the 8000-point barrier and also won a Commonwealth Games medal in the event. On his performance in Nagoya he was blunt: "No, it was pretty bad. I can’t even make up things to justify this performance, other than the fact that half way through day two, I was only thinking of when it would be over, I just wanted to be done with competing for this year," he admitted.
Shankar attributed much of the result to the cumulative toll of a busy season and the mental demands of the decathlon. "The reality is that the decathlon is not just such a physical event but it is also very mental event. There’s only so many of them you can do in a year. It’s like a marathon, there is a limit to how many you can run. Yuma (Maruyama), who won gold, did one decathlon in April, started one in May but didn’t finish and this is his second. I have been going on since January 30. Those things add up," he explained.
He said he had deliberately entered multiple competitions to gain practice this year and acknowledged the Federation's role in his selection for Nagoya. "I had to do it; I needed to get that practice. But I did four events this year, and I am thankful that the AFI not only allowed me to skip the inter-state championship but also bent their policy and considered my Federation Cup performance for selection; else I wouldn’t have crossed 7200 points here."
Shankar pointed to consistency as the season's positive and set a specific points target for progression. "That being said, I have scored more than 7900 points in every event I have done, which speaks of the improvement I have made over the past year. In my mind, consistency is more important than a one-off big performance. Now I just have to find another 300 points and add all the good things I did through the year into one meet and there is the 8300 points which will help me qualify for the World Championships," he declared.
He outlined changes he believes are necessary in his competition calendar and described discussions he intends to have with the federation about scheduling. "It’s very important to be able to do that (plan schedule) if I aspire to go to the Worlds next year or the Olympics after that. I can’t be doing five decathlons and then expect to score 8400 at the end of the year to qualify for the Olympics. Ideally, three events in a year is the sweet spot. It’s something I need to work out in co-operation with the federation, but it’s also something I need to work around so that the Championship event of that year is my 2nd or 3rd," he explained. His coach Kip Janvrin, described in reports as a former American decathlete with the world record for most career decathlon wins (41) and 26 with over 8000 points, flew in specially to watch him, and Shankar said the consecutive bronze medals at the Commonwealth Games and Asian Games remained a source of frustration: "monkey I need to get off my back, I am really, really upset at it at the moment".
Away from the track, Shankar has duties as a graduate teaching assistant and postponed grading to compete in Nagoya; he teaches biomechanics and introduction to kinesiology at Kansas State University as part of funding for his master's degree in kinesiology. On expectations from younger athletes he said: "I don’t want to be anyone’s role model, if someone wants to learn something, it’s to enjoy doing what you do. That’s all," he signs off.
Shankar said he needs to consolidate the season's gains into a single higher-scoring meeting and reiterated the numerical target that would open qualification for the World Championships: an additional 300 points to reach 8300. He also insisted planning his competition schedule is essential if he "aspires to go to the Worlds next year or the Olympics after that."
