Asian Games 2026: Shooter Neeru Dhanda wins India's first individual gold in Nagoya

Nagoya: Neeru Dhanda scripted history on Tuesday by becoming the first Indian shooter to claim an Asian Games gold medal in the women's trap individual event, breaking the continental record in the process.

Her historic triumph came shortly after she anchored India to a silver medal in the women's trap team competition.

The 26-year-old from Haryana, who previously made history in July as the first Indian woman to secure a Shotgun World Cup trap gold medal in Italy, clinched the title with a score of 28, surpassing the former Asian record of 24.

No Indian female trap or skeet markswoman had previously secured an individual podium finish at the Asian Games.

In men's events, Randhir Singh claimed India's historic individual gold in the trap discipline at the 1978 Games, while Ronjan Sodhi secured individual gold in the double trap event at the 2010 Games.

Neeru reached the eight-shooter final after advancing as joint-top qualifier alongside Qatar's Ray Bassil with a score of 118, setting a Games qualification record.

The Indian trio of Neeru (118), Aashima Ahlawat (106), and Manisha Keer (104) combined for a total score of 328 to finish second behind gold medallists China (346) in the team competition.

The victorious Chinese team featured Liu Shanshan, Sun Yunong, and Zhu Jingyu.

Kuwait's team of Alhawal Shahad, Abdulmalik Hajar, and Alhawal Sarah took the bronze medal with a combined tally of 325.

In the individual standings, Ahlawat finished 16th, and Keer placed 23rd in qualification, both missing out on the final.

Meanwhile, the Indian men's trap team finished in a disappointing sixth place among 10 competing nations.

However, Shapath Bharadwaj successfully qualified for the individual final after placing eighth.

The 24-year-old shooter from Meerut advanced through a shoot-off for the remaining two qualification spots, edging out Mohammed Al-Rumaihi to claim the eighth and final berth.

The Indian squad comprising Bharadwaj, Kynan Chenai, and Ahvar Rizvi posted a combined score of 339.

Kuwait won the men's team gold medal with a total of 355, while Qatar (349) and Kazakhstan (348) captured the silver and bronze medals respectively.

The Indian men's trap team, featuring Chenai, Zoravar Singh Sandhu, and Prithviraj Tondaiman, had previously won gold at the 2023 Games in Hangzhou.