Mandaviya hails Kushare's historic Asian Games high jump silver
Synopsis
Sarvesh Kushare cleared 2.25m to win silver in Men's High Jump at Asian Games 2026, ending India's 56-year medal drought in the event. Union Sports Minister Mansukh Mandaviya hailed the feat, underlining the gains from India's sustained sports investment under Khelo India and TOPS.
Key Takeaways
Sarvesh Kushare won a silver medal in Men's High Jump at Asian Games 2026 with a clearance of 2.25 metres .
The medal ends India's 56-year wait for a podium finish in this event at the Asian Games.
Union Sports Minister Mansukh Mandaviya celebrated the achievement on X, calling it 'A Leap Into History.' The breakthrough comes against the backdrop of India's Khelo India programme (launched 2017) and the Target Olympic Podium Scheme (launched 2014), both of which support elite athletics.
The performance places Kushare within a competitive range relevant to the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics qualifying cycle.
Fifty-six years of waiting ended in a single soaring moment. Sarvesh Kushare cleared 2.25 metres in the Men's High Jump at the Asian Games 2026 on Sunday, 27 September, winning India a historic silver medal — the country's first in this event in over half a century. Union Minister of Labour, Employment, Youth Affairs and Sports Mansukh Mandaviya celebrated the feat on X, calling it 'A Leap Into History.'
Kushare's 2.25m clearance breaks a 56-year drought
The last time India stood on a podium in the Asian Games Men's High Jump, the world looked very different. Fifty-six years had passed without a medal in the discipline — a gap that Kushare erased with a single jump in 2026. Clearing 2.25 metres is no routine athletic achievement; at the continental level, it places an athlete firmly among Asia's elite, where sub-regional records in the event routinely push past 2.30m. That Kushare got there signals a genuine step-change, not a lucky podium.
Government's sporting pipeline behind the breakthrough
India's athletics results have not arrived in a vacuum. The Khelo India programme, launched in 2017, and the Target Olympic Podium Scheme (TOPS), introduced in 2014, together form the two-tier policy engine designed to take athletes from grassroots discovery to international competition. Athletics — long in the shadow of India's traditional medal sports like shooting and wrestling — has been a stated focus of both schemes in recent cycles. Successive Asian Games have charted incremental gains on the track and in the field, and Sunday's silver adds a new data point to that upward curve.
What a continental silver could mean for Los Angeles 2028
Minister Mandaviya's celebration is also, implicitly, a signal about the trajectory ahead. A high jump silver at the Asian level puts Kushare inside a competitive band where Olympic qualification becomes a realistic target. The 2028 Los Angeles Olympics qualifying window will open in the next athletic season, and a performance of 2.25m at a major games puts him on the map. Whether the Ministry channels fresh resources — through TOPS expansion or dedicated coaching — into sustaining this momentum is the next question India's athletics community will be watching closely.
From the starting blocks of policy to a silver medal podium in 2026, India's high jump story has finally turned a page — and Sarvesh Kushare's name is written at the top of it.
Point of View
A discipline where the country has historically underperformed at the continental level. For Minister Mandaviya, the milestone reinforces the political narrative around sports governance reform ahead of the Olympic cycle. The 2028 Los Angeles Games will be the real test: whether this breakthrough translates into a qualifying mark will determine whether Sunday's jump was a peak or a launchpad.
NationPress
27 Sept 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Sarvesh Kushare?
Sarvesh Kushare is an Indian high jump athlete who won a silver medal at the Asian Games 2026 with a clearance of 2.25 metres , ending India's 56-year medal drought in the Men's High Jump at the Games.
What did India win at Asian Games 2026 in high jump?
India won a silver medal in Men's High Jump at Asian Games 2026 through Sarvesh Kushare , who cleared 2.25 metres .
How long had India waited for an Asian Games high jump medal?
India had waited 56 years for a medal in Men's High Jump at the Asian Games before Kushare's silver in 2026 .
What is the Khelo India programme?
The Khelo India programme was launched in 2017 by the Indian government to develop grassroots sports talent and support elite athletes across disciplines including athletics.
What did Mansukh Mandaviya say about the Asian Games 2026 high jump result?
Union Sports Minister Mansukh Mandaviya posted on X calling it 'A Leap Into History,' celebrating Kushare's silver and the end of India's 56-year wait in the event.
