The Indian athletes created history at the Asian Para Games 2023 with their best-ever performance of 111 medals held at Hangzhou.

It was India’s back to back 100s at Hangzhou. After a  record haul of 107 medals at the Asian Games, the Indian para athletes clinched a total of 111 medals- 29 gold, 31 silver and 51 bronze- at the Asian Para Games. In 2018, India won 72 medals- 29 gold, 31 silver and 51 bronze. In the overall medal table, India finished 5th which is also its best-ever standing at the Asian Para Games.

The Indian para athletes also broke three world records in this edition of the Asian Para Games. Gurjar Sundar Singh set a new world record in the Men’s Javelin Throw-F46 discipline with a  68.60m effort. Sumit Antil set a new world record in the Men’s Javelin Throw-F64 with a 73.29m attempt. The Men’s Compound Archery Team accounted for the third world record with a score of 158.

India’s gold medal winners at the Hangzhou Asian Para Games

Sumit Antil- Men’s Javelin F64

One of the most decorated para athletes of India, Sumil Antil wanted to become a wrestler. But at the age of 17, while he was returning home from training, his left leg was amputated due to a motorbike accident. In 2017, Antil was introduced to para games and he took up Javelin Throw as his sport. Currently, Sumit Antil holds the world record, having thrown 70.83 meters at the 2023 World Para Athletics Championships in Paris. At the Hangzhou Asian Para Games Javelin Throw F64 event, Sumit created a new world record of 73.29m to win the gold. 

Sundar Singh Gurjar- Men’s Javelin F46

Sundar Singh Gujjar set a new world record enroute his gold medal win at the Asian Para Games. He threw the spear at a distance of 68.60m to break the earlier world record of 67.79m. Sundar won bronze medal in the Men’s Javelin Throw F46 event at the 2020 Tokyo Paralympics.

Haney- Men’s Javelin F37

India’s Haney added one more gold medal to India’s Javelin Throw discipline at the Asian Para Games. He set the Games record with a throw of 55.97m.

Neeraj Yadav- Gold in Men’s Discus Throw F54/55/56 & Men’s Javelin F55

At the age of seven, Neeraj Yadav was diagnosed with neuro-damage. But he took sport to challenge his disability and excelled in Javelin, Discus and Shot Put. In 2018 Asian Para Games, Neeraj won gold in Javelin F55 category. He defended the title with a massive throw of 33.69m, setting a new Para Games Record. Neeraj also won gold in Discus Throw by setting a new Asian record of 38.56m.

Sheetal Devi- 2 Gold and 1 Silver in Compound Archery

India’s only armless archer, 16-year old Sheetal Devi created history by bagging two gold medals in this edition of Asian Para Games. Since birth, Sheetal has been suffering from phocomelia—a condition in which limbs are underdeveloped. But her disability did not become an obstacle for her as she chose to pursue archery and to shoot with her tooth and leg. Sheetal Devi won gold in the Women’s Compound Individual event with a win over Alim Nur Syahidah of Singapore. Her next gold came in Compound Mixed Team event partnering Rakesh Kumar. She also bagged a silver in the Women’s Compound Doubles along with Sarita.

Rakesh Kumar- Gold in Mixed Team Compound Archery & 2 Silver in Men’s Individual and Doubles Compound Archery

Along with Sheetal Devi, Rakesh Kumar won the gold medal in Mixed Team compound Archery. 38-year old Rakesh Kumar took up Archery in 2009 after recovering from a spinal cord injury.

Pramod Bhagat- Men’s Singles Badminton SL3

India’s seasoned Badminton player, Pramod Bhagat, defended his Asian Games gold medal. Pramod beat his countryman Nitesh Kumar to win the title. Pramod, who developed polio at the age of five, started playing Badminton from the age of thirteen. Currently, he is also the Paralympic Champion having won the gold medal at Tokyo 2020.

Suhas Yathiraj- Men’s Singles Badminton SL4

An IAS officer by profession, Suhas Yathiraj has an impairment to one of his ankles. But it is always sport that helped him to conquer himself. In 2018 Asian Para Games, he won a silver in Men’s Team event. But this year he won the gold in Men’s Singles SL4v category. Suhas Yathiraj also won a silver medal in the Tokyo Paralympics.

Thulasimathi Murugesan- Women’s Singles Badminton SU5

Para-shuttler Thulasimathi Murugesan clinched another gold medal for the country at the Asian Para Games 2023 in Hangzhou. She faced tough competition in the final but won against Yang Qiuxia of China with a scoreline of 21-19, 21-19.

Nitesh Kumar and Tarun Dhillon- Men’s Doubles Badminton SL3/SL4

Hisar-based para sportsperson Tarun Dhillon and his partner Nitesh Kumar won gold medal in the Badminton Men’s Doubles SL3/SL4 event at the Asian Para Games. Tarun, ranked World No. 2 and Nitesh defeated the Indonesian team 9-21, 21-19, 22-20 in a thrilling match.

Avani Lekhara- Women’s R2 10m Air Rifle Stand Shooting SH1

Hailing from Rajasthan, Avani Lekhara met a car accident at the age of eleven that left her with complete paraplegia. But her father encouraged her to took sports and she took up Shooting. Avani Lekhara became the first Indian woman to win a Paralympic gold medal when she set a Paralympic record at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics. This year, she added added an Asian Games medal to her list of achievements as she won gold in Women’s R2 10m Air Rifle Stand Shooting.

Sidhartha Babu- R6 Mixed 50m Rifle Prone Shooting SH1

Sidhartha Babu won gold by securing an Asian Para Games record score of 247.7. He has also qualified for shooting at the 2024 Paris Paramlympics.

Prachi Yadav- Gold in Women’s Canoe- KL2 & Silver in Women’s Canoe- VL2  

Prachi Yadav won the first medal for India at the Asian Para Games 2023 when she won silver in Women’s Canoe VL2 category. On the second day of the Games, she won the gold in Women’s Canoe KL2 category and became the first Indian to win a Canoe gold in the Asian Para Games.

Nishad Kumar- Men’s High Jump T47

Nishad Kumar lost his right hand at the age of six when a grass-cutting machine severed it accidentally. He took up the sport of para-athletics in 2009. At the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics, Nishad clinched silver medal in the Men’s High Jump T47 category. In this edition of Asian Para Games, Nishad won his career’s first major gold medal.

Sailesh Kumar- Men’s High Jump T63

Sailesh Kumar won the first gold of this edition’s Asian Para Games with a new Games record of 1.82m in Men’s High Jump-T63.

Praveen Kumar- Men’s High Jump T64

Praveen Kumar won the Men’s High Jump T64 category by creating a new Asian Games record of 2.02m. Praveen is also a silver medal winner at the Tokyo Paralympics.

Nimisha Suresh – Women’s Long Jump T47

Nimisha Suresh clinched a gold medal in the Women’s Long Jump with a jump of 5.15m.

Dharmaraj Solairaj- Men’s Long Jump T64

Dharmaraj Solairaj bagged a gold medal for the country in the Men’s Long Jump-T64at the Asian Para Games. He created a new Asian and Para Games record of 6.80m.

Sachin Khilari- Men’s Shot Put F46

Sachin Khilari won the gold medal in Shot Put by throwing the iron ball for an Asian Games record of 16.03m. Earlier this year, Sachin Khilari bagged his place in next year’s Paralympics after clinching gold medal at the Para Athletics World Championships in Paris.

Pranav Soorma- Men’s Club Throw F51

Para athlete Pranav Soorma created an Asian Para Games record of 30.01m to clinch gold in Men’s Club Throw F51 event. Pranav started para sports after he was left paralysed due to an accident at the age of 16 years.

Deepthi Jeevanji- Women’s 400m T20

Deepthi Jeevanji ovecame her intellectual disability to win gold in Women’s 400m T20 category with a new Para Asian Games record timing of 56.69s.

Raman Sharma- Men’s 1500m T38

Raman Sharma won gold in Men’s 1500m T-38 category by clocking 4:20.80 in a close finish. 

Ankur Dhama- Gold in Men’s 5000m T11 & Men’s 1,500m T11

Born in Uttar Pradesh’s Baghpat district, Ankur Dhama lost his vision completely when he was six years old. During the 2016 Rio Paralympic Games, he injured himself to such an extent that many thought it was the end of his career. But he never gave up and  eight years later, he bagged two gold medals at the 4th Asian Para Games.

Rakshita Raju- Women’s 1500m T11

Blind runner Rakshitha Raju, defended her Asian Games gold medal in Women’s 1500m T11 category when she finished this edition’s race clocking her personal best time of 5:21.45 seconds. 

Dilip Mahadu Gavit- Men’s 400m T47

Dilip Gavit won the historic 100th medal for India at the Hangzhou Asian Para Games when he won the gold in Men’s 400m T47 category with a brilliant run time of 49.48s. 

Darpan Inani- Rapid Chess VI-B1

Darpan inani was treated with wrong medication for his Stevens-Johnson Syndrome at the age of two for which he evntually llost his eyesight completely. However, he did not give up his hope and resorted to Chess. In this edition of Asian Para Games, Darpan won gold in Rapid Chess individual and team VI-B1 events.

India’s silver medal winners at the Hangzhou Asian Para Games

Krishna Nagar- Men’s Singles Badminton SH6

Nitesh Kumar- Men’s Singles Badminton SL6

Raj Kumar and Chirag Baretha- Men’s Doubles Badminton SU5

Manasi Joshi and Thulasimathi Murugesan- Women’s Doubles Badminton SL3-SU5

Rudransh Khandelwal- Mixed 50m Pistol Shotting SH1 & Men’s 10m Air Pistol P1

Simran- Women’s 100m T12 & Women’s 200m T12

Ajay Kumar- Men’s 400m T64

Parmod- Men’s 1500m T46

Sharath Shankarappa Makanahalli- Men’s 1500m T13

Lalitha Killaka- Women’s 1500m T11

Mariyappan Thangavelu- Men’s High Jump T63

Ram Pal- Men’s High Jump T47

Monu Ghangas- Men’s Discus Throw F11

Bhagyashri Madhavrao Jhadav- Women’s Shot Put F34

Ravi Rongali- Men’s Shot Put F40

Soman Rana- Men’s Shot Put F56/57

Pooja- Women’s Discus Throw F54/55

Sarita- Women’s Doubles Compound Archery

Dharambir- Men’s Club Throw F51

Pradeep Kumar- Men’s Javelin F54

Rinku Hooda- Men’s Javelin F46

Zainab Khatoon- Women’s 61kg Powerlifting

Yogesh Kathuniya- Men’s Discus Throw F54/55/56

Suraj Singh- Men’s Doubles Compound Archery

Kapil Parmar- Men’s Judo 60kg J1

Soundarya Pradhan- Men’s Individual Rapid Chess VI-B1

Anita and Narayana Konganapalle- PR3 Mixed Double Sculls

India’s bronze medal winners at the Hangzhou Asian Para Games

Bhavina Patel- Women’s Singles Table Tennis Class 4

Sandeep Dangi- Men’s Singles Table Tennis Class 1

Nithya Sre- Women’s Singles Badminton SH6

Manasi Joshi- Women’s Singles Badminton SL3

Manisha Ramadass and Pramod Bhagat- Mixed Doubles Badminton SL3-SU5

Sukant Kadam- Men’s Singles Badminton SL4

Manisha Ramadass- Women’s Singles Badminton SU5

Sivarajan Solaimalai and Krishna Nagar- Men’s Doubles Badminton SH6

Manisha Ramadass and Mandeep Kaur- Women’s Doubles Badminton SL3/SU5

Thulasimathi Murugesan and Nitesh Kumar- Mixed Doubles Badminton SL3-SU5

Nithya Sre and Sivarajan Solaimalai- Mixed Doubles Badminton SH6

Nithya Sre and Rachana Patel- Women’s Doubles Badminton SH6

Vaishnavi Puneyani- Women’s Singles Badminton SL4

Mandeep Kaur- Women’s Singles Badminton SL3

Aruna Tanwar- Women’s 47kg K44 Taekwondo

Manish Kaurav- Men’s Canoe KL3

Gajendra Singh- Men’s Canoe VL2

Ekta Bhyan- Women’s Club Throw F32/51

Amit Saroha- Men’s Club Throw F51

Narayan Thakur- Men’s 200m T35 & Men’s 100m T35

Shreyansh Trivedi- Men’s 200m T37 & Men’s 100m T37

Rakesh Bhaira- Men’s 1500m T46

Balwant Singh Rawat- Men’s 1500m T13

Pooja- Women’s 1500m T20

Pushpendra- Men’s Javelin F64

Ajeet Singh- Men’s Javelin F46

Chand Tek- Men’s Javelin Throw F55

Unni Renu- Men’s High Jump T64

Laxit- Men’s Javelin F54

Rohit Kumar- Men’s Shot Put F46

Monu Ghangas- Men’s Shot Put F11

Muthuraja- Men’s Shot Put F55

Manu- Men’s Shot Put F37

Hotozhe Dena Hokato- Men’s Shot Put F56/57

Muthuraja- Men’s Discus Throw F54/55/56

Lakshmi- Women’s Discus Throw F37/38

Harvinder Singh and Sahil- Men’s Doubles Recurve Archery

Adil Mohamed and Naveen Dalal- Men’s Doubles W1 Archery

Raj Kumari- Women’s 61kg Powerlifting

Ashok- Men’s 65kg Powerlifting

Kokila- Women’s 48kg J2 Judo

Himanshi Rathi- Women’s Standard Chess

Ashwin Makwana- Men’s Individual Rapid Chess VI-B1

Kishan Gangolli- Men’s Individual Rapid Chess VI-B2/B3

Kishan Gangolli, Aryan Joshi, Somendra- Men’s Team Rapid Chess VI-B2/B3

Himanshi Rathi, Sanskruti More, Vruthi Jain- Women’s Team Rapid Chess VI-B1

Suyash Jadhav- Men’s 50M Butterfly Swimming S7

Manish Narwal- P1 Men’s 10m Air Pistol Shooting

Francis Rubina- P2 Women’s 10m Air Pistol SH1 Shooting