Indian Para-Athletes Who Won Medals at the Asian Para Games

A 16-year-old armless archer shot her way to two golds. Sheetal Devi did it at Hangzhou in October 2023, while Indian para-athletes piled up 111 medals around her. Those stars changed how fans see para sport. This guide profiles the Indian para-athletes who won medals at the Asian Para Games, from Jakarta 2018 to Aichi-Nagoya 2026.

Here’s a fair warning. India won 29 golds in 2023 alone, so no single list can name everyone. Instead, this guide picks standout names, firsts and records. Every fact is current as of October 21, 2026, and the 2026 Games are still running. Even so, the story already has plenty of heroes.

The Record Years Behind the Stars

India’s para team has grown fast. At Jakarta 2018, it won 72 medals, with 15 golds, 24 silvers and 33 bronzes. Then Hangzhou 2023 raised the bar to 111 medals, including 29 golds, 31 silvers and 51 bronzes. India finished fifth. It was the first time the team crossed the 100-medal mark.

Hangzhou 2023 by Sport

• Athletics: 55 medals (18 gold, 17 silver, 20 bronze)
• Badminton: 21 medals (4 gold, 4 silver, 13 bronze)
• Chess: 8 medals (2 gold, 1 silver, 5 bronze)
• Archery: 7 medals (2 gold, 3 silver, 2 bronze)
• Shooting: 6 medals (2 gold, 2 silver, 2 bronze)
• Canoe: 4 medals (1 gold, 1 silver, 2 bronze)
• Powerlifting, table tennis, judo, rowing, swimming and taekwondo: 10 medals combined

Athletics clearly led the way, with more medals than any other sport by a huge margin. Yet badminton, chess and archery added depth. As a result, India’s success didn’t rest on a single sport. That balance made the 111-medal total possible.

Para Athletics: The Backbone of the Team

Track and field produced most of the headlines. Sumit Antil, a Tokyo Paralympic champion, set the tone. At Hangzhou he won the javelin F64 gold with 73.29m, a new world record. He had held the previous mark of 70.83m himself. His Tokyo winning throw was 68.55m, so he keeps raising his own bar. Pushpendra Singh took bronze in the same event with 62.06m.

Ankur Dhama and the Double Gold

Ankur Dhama made history on the track. He won the men’s 5000m T11 gold, then added the 1500m T11 gold a day later. That made him the first Indian to win two golds at a single Asian Para Games. His 1500m time was 4:27.70.

The High Jump Group

India also dominated the high jump pits. Nishad Kumar won the T47 gold, with Ram Pal taking silver. Shailesh Kumar won the T63 gold, while Mariyappan Thangavelu took silver. Praveen Kumar added the T64 gold. Those three events alone produced three golds and two silvers.

More Champions on the Field

Other names shone as well. Pranav Soorma won club throw F51 gold, and Dharambir and Amit Kumar took silver and bronze. Haney won the men’s F37/38 javelin with a Games record of 55.97m. Nimisha Suresh Chakkungalparambil won the women’s T47 long jump with a leap of 5.15m. Deepthi Jeevanji, meanwhile, took the women’s 400m T20 gold.

Experience paid off for Rakshitha, too. She won the women’s 1500m T11 gold in Jakarta in 2018. Then she defended that title in Hangzhou. A repeat win is hard at this level. Her story suggests that the 72-medal team of 2018 helped build the 111-medal team of 2023.

A Quick Guide to Classification Codes

Those codes can look confusing, so here’s a simple key. In athletics, the letter T means track and F means field. Classes T11 to T13 cover athletes with visual impairments, while T20 covers athletes with intellectual impairments. F64 covers throwers who compete with a prosthesis on a lower limb. In badminton, SL and SU mean standing lower and standing upper classes. As a result, an event name tells you both the sport and the athlete’s class.

Archery: Sheetal Devi’s Breakthrough

Few stories matched Sheetal Devi’s. She was born on January 10, 2007, and trained for about 11 months before Hangzhou. Then she shot two golds and a silver at the Games. She won the mixed team compound with Rakesh Kumar, beating China’s Lin Yueshan and Ai Xinliang 151-149 in the final.

Her individual gold came a day later in the women’s compound open. In the women’s doubles, she and Sarita took silver after a narrow 150-152 loss to a Chinese pair. Sheetal has since qualified for Aichi-Nagoya 2026. So the three-medal run from Hangzhou was only the beginning.

Shooting, Badminton and Other Sports

Shooting

Avani Lekhara won the women’s 10m air rifle standing SH1 gold in Hangzhou. Sidhartha Babu took gold in the mixed 50m rifle prone SH1, with an Asian Para Games record score of 247.7. Rudransh Khandelwal added a silver in the mixed 50m pistol SH1. Together, they gave India a strong shooting haul of six medals.

Badminton

Pramod Bhagat remains India’s best-known para badminton player, and he’s a two-time world champion. In Hangzhou, he and Manisha Ramdass won bronze in the mixed doubles SL3-SU5. Badminton produced 21 medals in all, which shows how deep that squad runs.

Canoe, Taekwondo and Judo

Several Indian para-athletes also broke new ground. Prachi Yadav won silver in the women’s VL2 canoe event, and that made her India’s first medallist of the Games. She later became the first Indian to win a para canoe gold. Aruna won bronze in the women’s K44 -47kg category, which was India’s first para taekwondo medal at the Games. Kapil Parmar took judo silver, and Kokila added bronze.

Firsts and Records at a Glance

• Ankur Dhama: first Indian to win two golds at one Asian Para Games (2023)
• Prachi Yadav: first Indian para canoe gold at the Games
• Aruna: India’s first para taekwondo medal at the Games
• Sumit Antil: javelin F64 world record of 73.29m
• Sidhartha Babu: Asian Para Games record of 247.7 in mixed 50m rifle prone SH1
• Haney: Games record of 55.97m in javelin F37/38
• Deepthi Jeevanji: Asian Para Games record of 56.36 seconds in the women’s 400m T20 (2026)

Aichi-Nagoya 2026: New Winners and Returning Indian Para-Athletes

The current Games add fresh chapters. India opened its account when Mona Agarwal won the women’s 10m air rifle standing SH1 gold. Avani Lekhara took silver for a one-two finish. Since then, golds have also come from Nishad Kumar in the men’s long jump T47. Soumya won the women’s 1500m T12/T13. Rinku won the men’s javelin F46, and Simran took the women’s 200m T12.

Some names repeat across both Games. Deepthi Jeevanji won the 400m T20 in Hangzhou and again in Aichi-Nagoya. Nishad Kumar won gold in both editions, too. For the latest count, see our recap of India’s medal tally, winners and highlights. Meanwhile, the Asian Para Games 2026 schedule, sports list and venues shows where each sport is played.

What These Careers Show

Take a step back and a pattern appears. Many of these Indian para-athletes compete at several levels. Sumit Antil and Avani Lekhara defended Paralympic titles in Paris, while Sheetal Devi won a bronze there. Our explainer on Asian Para Games vs Paralympics shows how those stages differ.

Here’s an opinion, framed as one. The Asian Para Games give young athletes their first big breakthrough. Sheetal Devi’s rise proves it, because she went from a newcomer to a double champion in under a year. Because of this, the event matters far beyond the medal table. Each medal also draws new viewers to para sport, and that attention helps the next group of athletes. In short, today’s winners are building the path for tomorrow’s champions across every sport.

Key Takeaways

• Biggest haul: 111 medals at Hangzhou 2023, including 29 golds.
• First double champion: Ankur Dhama won two golds in 2023.
• World record: Sumit Antil threw 73.29m in the javelin F64.
• Archery star: Sheetal Devi won two golds and a silver in Hangzhou.
• Repeat winners: Deepthi Jeevanji and Nishad Kumar won gold in 2023 and 2026.

FAQs

Who was the first Indian to win two golds at one Asian Para Games?

Ankur Dhama achieved that in 2023, winning the 5000m T11 and 1500m T11.

Who set a world record at the Hangzhou Asian Para Games?

Sumit Antil threw 73.29m in the javelin F64 final.

How many medals did India win at Hangzhou 2023?

India won 111 medals, including 29 golds, 31 silvers and 51 bronzes.

Which Indian archer won two golds in Hangzhou?

Sheetal Devi won the mixed team and individual compound golds.

Who won India’s first para taekwondo medal at the Games?

Aruna won bronze in the women’s K44 -47kg category.

Conclusion

Indian para-athletes have turned the Asian Para Games into a showcase of grit and skill. From Sumit Antil’s world record to Sheetal Devi’s double gold, the names keep growing. Aichi-Nagoya 2026 is adding new golds to that story, led again by athletics. The record books now carry many Indian para-athletes, and more entries may follow.