Asian Games: India hit a century but it’s just the beginning

India’s record-breaking performance at the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou, China, has been nothing short of brilliant. Sportspersons from different disciplines delivered many expected — and some surprising — outcomes to exceed the expectations of a 100-medal tally with some ease. The 661-strong contingent ended their journey with 107 medals, which included 28 golds, 38 silvers and 41 bronzes, breaking the previous record of 70 medals at the 18th Asian Games held in Jakarta and Palembang, Indonesia, in 2018. Followers of multi-sport events celebrated across India, while a few who felt the 100-medal dream was unrealistic fell silent. Compliments for the winning sportspersons poured from across the country. Prime Minister Narendra Modi posted on X (formerly Twitter), “A momentous achievement for India at the Asian Games! The people of India are thrilled that we have reached a remarkable milestone of 100 medals. I extend my heartfelt congratulations to our phenomenal athletes whose efforts have led to this historic milestone for India.” PM Modi added that he was looking forward to hosting the contingent on October 10, where he will interact with the athletes. President Droupadi Murmu’s X post after the nation reached the final tally of 107 medals read, “India’s contingent signs off Asian Games with an impressive show of skill and grit!” She added, “The nation is proud of the players who bring home 107 medals, setting new benchmarks of excellence.” The winning sportspersons deserve every compliment that has — and will — come their way. Of course, there have been many famous Indian sporting triumphs earlier. The Indian hockey team won its first Olympic gold in 1928, and followed it up with five consecutive golds until the 1956 Melbourne Olympics. A few sportspersons wrote their names in the record books because their spirited performances did ‘not’ lead to Olympic medals. A four-time Asian Games gold medal-winning sprinter, Milkha Singh, whose nickname ‘The Flying Sikh’ was possibly inspired by ‘The Flying Finn’ given to Finnish athletes who were famous for their speed, finished fourth in the 400m final at the 1960 Rome Olympics after leading the race for more than 200m. PT Usha, an 11-time medal winner at the Asian Games, also finished fourth at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics. Singh and Usha missed being on the podium by a whisker, and their feats have turned into indelible memories in Indian sporting history. Competition at the Olympics is usually much tougher. However, the present performance will inspire many medal-winning participants to dream big – and strive to make them come true. Someone like the 2020 Tokyo Olympics gold medal winner Neeraj Chopra will be a serious threat for the best among his rivals whenever he steps into any competitive arena with the javelin in his hand. But Chopra, whose gold medal win in Hangzhou was a national anticipation, will have the company of a few others with identical aspirations and far better chances of winning on the biggest sporting stage in the world. There were some astonishingly brilliant performances in Hangzhou as the days went by. Jyothi Surekha Vennam won three archery golds in the compound individual, mixed team and women’s team events. Archer Ojas Pravin Deotale won three golds in the compound men’s team, mixed team and individual events. APS Tomar won four in shooting: two golds in men’s team 10m air rifle and men’s team 50m rifle 3-positions events, one silver in men’s 50m rifle 3-positions individual and one bronze in 10m air rifle individual events. Shooter Esha Singh also won four: one gold in 25m pistol team and three silvers in 25m pistol individual, 10m air pistol team and 10m air pistol individual events. Track and field athlete Vithya Ramraj won three: two silvers in mixed 4 x 400m relay and women’s 4 x 400m relay and a bronze in 400m hurdles. While several participants won two medals each, India fared best in athletics (29 medals) and shooting (22), followed at some distance by archery (9), wrestling (6), boxing (5), squash (5) and rowing (5). India finished fourth on the medals table, behind hosts China (383 medals), Japan (188 medals) and South Korea (190 medals with 42 golds, ten less than Japan’s 52 golds). India (107 medals) is way behind China, but optimists would want to believe that our nation is perfectly capable of quantum leaping to the number three spot ahead of South Korea at the next Asian Games to be held in Japan. Sports lovers in India, who love more than just cricket, must get used to more Indian wins in far less popular forms of sport in the near future. Roller skaters (Sanjana Bathula, Karthika Jagadeeswaran, Heeral Sadhu and Aarathy Kasturi Raj in the women’s and Aryanpal Singh Ghuman, Anandkumar Velkumar, Siddhant Kamble and Vikram Ingale in the men’s speed skating teams) won bronze medals in the 3000m women’s and men’s relay events. This performance in roller sports equaled their best at the 2010 Asian Games in Guangzhou, China, where India had won bronze medals in men’s free skating and pairs skating events. Sunil Singh Salam and Arjun Singh won a bronze in canoe double 1000m sprint, the second medal ever in canoeing after a bronze in the same event at the 1994 Asian Games in Hiroshima, Japan. The Indian women’s sepaktakraw team won a bronze in the regu team event, bringing home India’s first-ever medal in women’s sepaktakraw at the Asian Games. So what if Indians did not win the gold in roller sports, canoeing and women’s sepaktakraw? Their bronze wins are bound to motivate more promising youngsters to pursue their sporting activities in relatively uncommon disciplines with a far greater degree of seriousness. A few failures took the average sports lover by surprise. Olympic bronze medalist and two-time medalist at the Asian Games, comeback man Bajrang Punia’s dream of winning the third Games medal crashed after two embarrassing defeats in the semis and repechage rounds in the men’s 65kg freestyle wrestling competition. Not every sporting encounter ends with a verdict we root for, but what was truly disappointing was Punia’s inability to offer any resistance to his opponents not once but twice. Two-time Olympic and two-time Asian Games medalist PV Sindhu, the poster girl of Indian sport, lost her badminton quarterfinal match against China’s He Bingjao in straight games. A slight dip in form, plus support of the home crowd, helped her local opponent go past her without much difficulty. The Indian contingent has ended its Asian Games campaign with several excellent scores in its report card. Many moments of glory have eclipsed occasional disappointments during the journey, suggesting the certainty of a far better future. The writer, a journalist for three decades, writes on literature and pop culture. Among his books are ‘MSD: The Man, The Leader’, the bestselling biography of former Indian captain MS Dhoni, and the ‘Hall of Fame’ series of film star biographies. Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely that of the author. They do not necessarily reflect Firstpost’s views. Read all the  Latest News,  Trending News,  Cricket News,  Bollywood News, India News and  Entertainment News here. Follow us on  Facebook,  Twitter and  Instagram.