Page 4 - Asian Games

Asian Games 2023: India men, women teams remain in second spot in Chess

Indian men and women's teams put up a strong show, posting convincing wins in the eighth round of the chess team competition at the Asian Games here on Friday. The men outplayed South Korea 3.5-0.5 while the women thrashed Hong Kong 4-0. After eight rounds, both the teams are in second spot with a round to play. In the India-South Korea match, D Gukesh went past Junhyeok Lee on the top board, while Praggnanandhaa got the better of Se Hyun Kwan. Arjun Erigaisi's win over In-Jung Gu came after a stiff fight with the Korean having gained an advantage before slipping up. The experienced P Harikrishna salvaged a draw against Ahn Hongjin on the fourth board from what seemed a lost position. The top-seeded men's team meets the Philippines on Saturday in the final round while Iran comes up against South Korea. In the women's match, India did not have any trouble with the quartet of D Harika, R Vaishali, Vantika Agarwal and B Savitha Shri winning easily. With none of the Hong Kong playe

Asian Games 2023: Satwik-Chirag enter final, keep maiden Gold hopes alive

An error-prone HS Prannoy signed off with an Asian Games bronze, India's first medal in men's singles in 41 years, but Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty kept alive the country's hopes of a first-ever badminton gold after cruising into the men's doubles final here on Friday. Satwik and Chirag, ranked world no. 3, dished out a badminton master-class to outclass Malaysia's Aaron Chia and Soh Wooi Yik, Tokyo bronze medallists and former world champions, 21-17, 21-12 in 46 minutes of dominance. The Indian pair thus became the first Indian men's doubles pair to assure of a silver at the Asian Games. The duo was also part of India's silver-medal winning men's team last week. Satwik and Chirag, the reigning Commonwealth Games gold medallists, will face Korea's Choi Sol Gyu and Kim Won Ho in the final on Saturday. The Indians have a 2-0 record against the Koreans. While the doubles pair was simply sensational, Prannoy, who was playing with a back niggle, succumbed in a pool of error

Hockey team not only won game but also hearts of countless Indians: PM Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi lauded Indian men's hockey team for winning the gold medal in the Asian Games, saying their unwavering commitment, passion and synergy have not only won the game but also the hearts of countless Indians. "An exhilarating Gold Medal triumph by our Men's Hockey Team at the Asian Games! Congratulations to the team for this outstanding performance. This team's unwavering commitment, passion and synergy have not only won the game but also the hearts of countless Indians. This victory is a testament to their spirit. Best wishes for the endeavours ahead," he posted on X. Skipper Harmanpreet Singh led admirably as the Indian men's hockey team mauled defending champions Japan 5-1 to reclaim the Asian Games gold in Hangzhou in China, their fourth in the continental showpiece, after nine years and qualify for next year's Paris Olympics on Friday. The prime minister congratulated several medal winners for their excellent show in the games. Praising Aman Sehrawat fo

Indian women roller-skaters stay in medal contention at Asian Games

Roller-skaters Greeshma Dontara and Sai Samhitha Akula kept their hopes alive of earning laurels for India, as they were placed fourth and sixth respectively in the ladies artistic single free skating short program final at the Asian Games here on Friday. Greeshma was ranked fourth with a segment score of 20.94 (9.81 in element, 11.13 in component), while Samhitha had a segment score of 16.95 (6.95 in element, 11 in component, and a one point deduction). Chinese Taipei's Hsiao-Ching Hung and Japan's Miki Fujikura were placed first and second with segment scores of 38.76 and 27.41, respectively. Both Indian skaters will be looking to improve their performance in a bid to strengthen their chances of winning medals in the final round at the Qiantang Roller Sports Centre on Saturday. Earlier, all other Indian roller-skaters had lost in their respective events. Indian roller-skaters had won two bronze medals at the 2010 Asian Games in Guangzhou.

Asian Games: India men's archery recurve team finishes with silver medal

Korea needed a perfect 10 on the last shot to finish it off and win it, and their archers delivered it perfectly

Asian Games: 'Bindaas maro' was the women's archery team's mantra

'Bindaas maro' (shoot fearlessly) was the mantra the underrated Indian women archers followed as they ended India's 13-year wait for a medal in the Olympic discipline recurve section by returning with a bronze at the Asian Games. Seeded fifth, India defeated lower-ranked Japan 6-2 before going down to top-seeded South Korea 2-6 to get into the bronze playoff where they emerged 6-2 winners against Vietnam. Indian recurve archers failed to win a medal in the last two edition of the Games and, this time too, all the focus in the Olympic section was on the men's team that had rising archer Dhiraj Bommadevara, who is on a career-high ranking of world No 15, double Olympian Atanu Das and Tushar Shelke. "Nobody gave us a chance, so I told them (Ankita Bhakat, Simranjeet Kaur and Bhajan Kaur) 'bindaas maro' as if it's your practice match. We had nothing to lose," women's team coach Purnima Mahato told PTI from Hangzhou. Before the Vietnamese could shoot their last three arrows, the bronze

Asian Games: Indian men go down against HK, settle for silver in bridge

The Indian men's team stumbled on the final hurdle against Hong Kong, and settled for a silver medal in the bridge competition at the Asian Games here on Friday. India, a gold and two bronze-medal winner at the 2018 Jakarta Asian Games, lost to Hong Kong 152-238.1 in the gold-medal match at Hangzhou. The Indian team consisting of Sandeep Thakral, Jaggy Shivadasni, Raju Tolani and Ajay Prabhkar Khare could not challenge the Hong Kong outfit at any point during the six sessions, spread over two days. Indian men were trailing 1-2 after the first two sessions, and they made a woeful start, losing the day's first session 32-42 to Hong Kong. Trailing 1-3, India needed to win the second session on the day, but Hong Kong emerged a clear 38-17 winner to all but seal the gold with a 4-1 lead.

Asian Games Highlights: India win Gold in Men's Hockey; Meal tally - 95

Asian Games 2023 highlights: India assured Silver in men's cricket by defeating Bangladesh by 9 wickets in the semifinal. Archers win Silver; India's medal tally: 95 - 22 Gold, 34 Silver & 39 Bronze

Asian Games: India win Gold medal after 9 years; qualify for Paris Olympics

A dominant Indian men's hockey team thrashed defending champions Japan 5-1 to reclaim the Asian Games gold medal after nine years and qualify for next year's Paris Olympics here on Friday. The Indians, who had to be content with a bronze medal in the last edition in Jakarta, thus won their fourth Asian Games gold and first since the 2014 Incheon edition. India's other gold medals came in 1966 and 1998, both times in Bangkok. Harmanpreet Singh (32nd, 59th minutes) scored a brace through penalty corners, Amit Rohidas (36th) also sounded the board from a set-piece, while Manpreet Singh (25th) and Abhishek (48th) found the net from field efforts to register the famous victory for India. Seren Tanaka converted a penalty corner for Japan in the 51st minutes.

Asian Games October 7 schedule: Cricket- IND vs AFG; Kabaddi team finals

Check the India Asian Games 2023 schedule on Day 14 (October 7), which includes India vs Afghanistan cricket final & India vs Iran Kabaddi final among other medal events

Asian Games: Indian wrestler Kiran wins bronze in women's freestyle 76kg

Kiran manages to defend run down the clock and secure a podium finish

India wins first-ever medal in women's sepaktakraw at Asian Games

India clinched their first-ever medal in women's sepaktakraw at the Asian Games with the regu team winning a bronze after losing to powerhouse Thailand in the semifinals here on Friday. The Indian women's team of Ayekpam Maipak Devi, Oinam Chaoba Devi, Khushbu, Elangbam Priya Devi and Elangbam Leirentombi Devi lost 10-21, 13-21 in the semifinals. India had finished second in their group behind Vietnam to make it to the semifinals. Thailand are the defending champions in the event. The two teams took a photograph together after the match. "Our players wanted to have a memory of their semifinal match against Thailand. They are the best players in the world and it was a great moment for our team to play against them," said chief coach Hem Raj who had an argument with the referee during the match. In sepaktakraw, both the semifinalists are awarded a bronze medal each. This was India's first-ever medal in women's sepaktakraw at the Asian Games, and only the second for the country in t

Asian Games: India men's archery recurve team finishes with silver medal

The Indian trio lost the gold medal match 1-5 to the Korean team consisting of Lee Wooseok, Oh Jinhyek and Kim Je Deok

Asian Games women's Kabaddi: India beat Nepal 61-17; assured of Silver

Two-time former champions India stormed into their fourth successive final of the Asian Games with a commanding 61-17 win over Nepal in the women's kabaddi event here on Friday. India, the last edition's runners-up, faced little challenge from their rivals and led 29-10 at half time with Pooja Hathwala and Pushpa Rana spearheading the raids. Overall, India inflicted five all-out in the match en route to making four out of four finals in the women's kabaddi at the continental showpiece. For India, Jharkhand youngster Akshima who was making her Asian Games debut was also impressive, making successful raids and earning two touch points. The Indian men's team, which finished with a bronze medal in the 2018 edition, will take on Pakistan in the semifinal later in the day.

Tracking Ram Baboo's fascinating journey from penury to fame

A daily wage labourer's son from an impoverished village in Uttar Pradesh, Asian Games bronze medallist race walker Ram Baboo's journey from penury to fame is a fascinating story of a strong-willed man making his own destiny. Baboo, who won a 35km race walk mixed team bronze medal in the Asian Games along with Manju Rani, worked as a waiter to self-finance his athletics training and joined his father in road construction under MGNREGA scheme during the COVID-19 lockdown, as his family was hard-pressed. "I have done everything possible in my life so far, from working as a waiter in Varanasi to digging up pits along with my father for road construction under MGNREGA scheme at our village," the 24-year-old Baboo told PTI in an interview. "It's about determination and focus on your goal. If you are determined to achieve, you will find ways to reach your goal. That is what I did." Baboo's father works as manual labourer at Behura village at UP's Sonbhadra district, earning Rs 3000 to 35

Asian Games 2023: Women's hockey team loses to China 0-4 in semifinal

Favourites India endured a forgettable 0-4 drubbing at the hands of China in the women's hockey semifinals, a result that not only pushed the team out of the gold medal race but also denied it a direct entry to the Paris Olympics. Last edition's silver medallist India, the highest-ranked team in the tournament at world number seven, was no match to world number China, who were the bronze medallist in 2018 in Jakarta. Jiaqi Zhong (25th minute), Meirong Zou (40th), Meiyu Liang (55th) and Bingfeng Gu (60th) scored the goals for China. China started on an attacking note put pressure on the Indian defence from the start. The Chinese managed to enter their opponent's circle on frequent basis but failed to find the back of the net as the Indians defended stoutly. China's relentless pressure resulted in back-to-back penalty corners in the sixth minute but failed to get past India captain Savita in front of the goal. The Indians made a few circle entries but failed to yield any results f

Asian Games: India set up semifinal clash with Pakistan in men's Kabaddi

Seven-time champions India on Thursday set up a semifinal clash with Pakistan in the men's kabaddi competition after topping their group following an unbeaten run in the Asian Games here. India first thrashed Chinese Taipei 50-27 to enter the semifinals and assure a medal and then notched up a 56-28 win over Japan in their last league match to top group A. India will next face Pakistan, who finished second in Group B. Against Chinese Taipei, India inflicted three all-outs on their opponents while the raiders notched four bonus points. The Indians led Chinese Taipei 28-12 in the first half before pocketing 22 more points as against their opponent's 15 in the second period. Chinese Taipei also made an all-out on the Indian team. Later in the day, India led by 24 points at halftime against Japan. Nitin Rawal and Nitesh Kumar combined to take down Japan captain Gayro Kono before Aslam stole a touchpoint. In kabaddi, the two losing semifinalists are awarded bronze medals since the 2

Dipika-Harinder bag mixed doubles gold, Ghosal settles for silver

Veterans Dipika Pallikal and Harinder Pal Singh Sandhu survived some anxious moments to clinch the mixed doubles gold, but Saurav Ghosal settled for singles silver on Thursday as Indian squash players recorded their best-ever performance at the Asian Games. Dipika and Harinder eked out a 11-10 11-10 win over Malaysian duo of Aifa Binti Azman and Mohammad Syafiq Bin Mohd Kamal in a tense 35 minute final to fetch India's second gold medal in squash at the ongoing event. However, it was disappointment for India's top player Ghosal as he lost to Malaysia's Eain Yow Ng 11-9, 9-11, 5-11, 7-11 in a little over an hour. But that wouldn't take sheen out of India's brilliant outing in the squash competition in Hangzhou, where they bettered the country's effort in the Incheon Games 2014. India had won a historic gold in the men's team event nine years ago, with two silver and a bronze to boot with. However, in the ongoing Games, India have won two gold, a silver and a bronze. I don't always

Asian Games 2023: All four Indian climbers progress to semifinals

The Indian climbers started their campaign in boulder and lead events on a positive note as all four advanced to the semifinals of the Asian Games here on Thursday. In the men's qualification match, Aman Verma finished eighth with a combined score of 118.8 (64.8 in boulder and 54 in lead) and advanced to the last four. Bharath Stephen Kamath Pereira followed suit after finishing 13th with a combined score of 97.8 (69.7 in boulder and 28.1 in lead). In the women's event, Saniya Farooque Shaikh, who finished 17th with a score of 51.4 (44.3 in boulder, 7.1 in lead) and Shivani Charak who finished 18th with a score of 45.9 (39.8 in boulder, 6.1 in lead) entered the semifinals. The men and women will play their semifinal clashes on Friday and Saturday, respectively. Sport climbing was introduced at Jakarta Asian Games in 2018. Speed climbing is one form of indoor rock climbing where athletes compete for the fastest time to the top of a vertical climbing wall.

Indian football team coach Stimac's contract extended until 2026

Senior national team head coach Igor Stimac's contract has been extended until 2026, the All India Football Federation (AIFF) announced on Thursday, rewarding him for overseeing three title triumphs this year. As per the contract, the Croat will automatically get an extension by another two years if India qualify for the third round of FIFA World Cup Qualifiers. Former India stopper Mahesh Gawli, the assistant coach of the senior men's team, was appointed as the head coach of the men's U-23 team. Stimac, a member of the Croatia side that finished third at the 1998 FIFA World Cup in France, took charge of the Blue Tigers in 2019 and has won four major titles with the side, including two SAFF Championships. "The federation, the members have decided to extended the contract of our national team, Igor Stimac, until the 2026 World Cup Qualifiers. We have agreed to this, agreed to continue as one team," AIFF secretary general Shaji Prabhakaran said during a virtual interaction. Stimac w