Sports Desk: Indian athlete Sawan Barwal scripted a historic chapter in Indian athletics on Saturday by winning the silver medal in the men’s marathon at the 2026 Asian Games in Nagoya, Japan, ending India’s 44-year wait for a medal in the event. The 28-year-old Indian Army runner clocked 2:11:37, improving his own national record in only his second competitive marathon. Japan’s Ichitaka Yamashita won the gold, while China’s Peiyou Feng secured the bronze.
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Barwal’s achievement is particularly significant as it marks India’s first Asian Games marathon medal won outside Indian soil. India’s previous medal in the event came at the 1982 Asian Games in New Delhi, where Hosur Kukkappa Seetharan won bronze. India had earlier won two marathon medals at the inaugural 1951 Asian Games in New Delhi, with Chhota Singh taking gold and Surat Singh Mathur winning bronze. Barwal’s silver therefore becomes only the fourth marathon medal for India in Asian Games history.
The performance also continues Barwal’s remarkable progress in the marathon. In April this year, he clocked 2:11:58 at the Rotterdam Marathon, breaking Shivnath Singh’s 48-year-old national record of 2:12:00. He subsequently lowered the mark again in Nagoya, improving it by another 21 seconds. Hailing from Himachal Pradesh, Barwal initially competed primarily in track events before making the transition to the marathon. He had also won gold medals in the 5,000m and 10,000m at the 2025 National Games.His silver in Nagoya not only ends India’s long wait for a men’s Asian Games marathon medal but also establishes Barwal as one of the country’s leading marathon runners.
