PM Modi hails women athletes: 38 medals 'a picture of new India'
Synopsis
PM Modi called India's 38 women's medals at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games 'a picture of new India' — and the numbers back him up. From a 17-year-old archery debutant beating South Korea to a 44-year hockey drought ending in gold, the continental showpiece revealed a generation of women athletes rewriting record books across disciplines.
Key Takeaways
PM Modi met the Asian Games contingent at Major Dhyan Chand Stadium, New Delhi on 15 October .
India finished fourth in the medal tally with 85 medals — 21 gold, 27 silver, 37 bronze .
Women athletes won 38 medals including 11 gold , prompting Modi to call the tally 'a picture of new India.' The Indian women's hockey team claimed gold after a 44-year wait ; both men's and women's teams won gold in the same edition for the first time in Asian Games history .
Kumkum Mohod (17) became India's first woman to win individual recurve archery gold, defeating South Korea in both individual and team finals.
Mirabai Chanu's silver ended India's 28-year wait for an Asian Games weightlifting medal.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday, 15 October met India's Asian Games contingent at the Major Dhyan Chand Stadium in New Delhi and singled out the country's women athletes for special praise, calling the 38 medals won by them at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games not merely a statistic but 'a picture of a new India.'
India finished fourth in the overall medal tally with a haul of 85 medals — 21 gold, 27 silver, and 37 bronze — its strongest performance in the continental showpiece in recent memory.
Modi's Message to the Nation's Daughters
'Friends, I would like to especially praise our daughters. Out of the 85 medals won by India, 38 medals were won by our women athletes. And 11 gold medals are included in them. And these medals are not just a number. This is a picture of a new India,' Modi said in his address to the athletes, who responded with chants of Bharat Mata ki Jai.
The Prime Minister's remarks underscored a deliberate effort to spotlight women's sporting achievement as emblematic of broader social change — a framing his government has deployed consistently since the Tokyo Olympics in 2021, when women athletes delivered several of India's most celebrated finishes.
Women's Hockey Team Ends a 44-Year Wait
Among the moments Modi highlighted most was the Indian women's hockey team's gold medal — the first in 44 years — achieved alongside the men's team, making this the first time in Asian Games history that both Indian hockey teams claimed gold in the same edition. 'You have brought gold and completed the long wait of 44 years,' Modi told the players.
The double gold in hockey marks a significant milestone for a sport that once defined India's Olympic identity but had endured decades of relative underperformance at the continental level.
Record-Setters Who Rewrote History
Several women athletes wrote their names into the record books at Aichi-Nagoya. Kumkum Mohod, just 17 years old, became India's first woman to claim gold in individual recurve archery, and compounded the achievement by winning the team gold as well — defeating reigning powerhouse South Korea in both finals.
Neeru Dhanda became India's first individual trap women's gold medalist at the Asian Games, while also winning gold in the mixed trap event alongside Kynan Chenai and a silver in the women's team event with Aashima Ahlawat and Manisha Keer.
Pranavi Urs made history as the first Indian woman to win a gold medal in golf at the Asian Games, and contributed to India's team silver in the same discipline.
Mirabai Chanu Completes Her Medal Cabinet
Celebrated weightlifter Mirabai Chanu added an Asian Games silver in the women's 49 kg category to a collection that already includes Olympic, Commonwealth Games, and World Championship medals. Her performance ended India's 28-year wait for a weightlifting medal at the Asian Games — a wait that underlines just how significant the result was beyond the individual achievement.
What This Signals for Indian Women's Sport
Taken together, the women's performances at Aichi-Nagoya reflect a structural shift in India's sporting pipeline — stronger grassroots programmes, improved training infrastructure, and a broader base of competitive athletes across disciplines ranging from archery and shooting to golf and hockey. With the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics on the horizon, the question now is whether these Asian Games breakthroughs can be translated into the world's biggest sporting stage.
Point of View
But the deeper story is structural: India's women are no longer winning on individual brilliance alone — they are winning in team events, in technical disciplines, and in sports that require long-term institutional investment. The 44-year hockey drought ending, a teenager beating South Korea in archery, a golfer claiming a continental first — these are outcomes of policy shifts that predate any single government. The harder question is whether the celebratory rhetoric will translate into sustained funding, better coaches, and uninterrupted competitive calendars — the unglamorous scaffolding that turns Asian Games winners into Olympic medallists.
NationPress
15 Oct 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
How many medals did Indian women win at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games?
Indian women athletes won 38 medals at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games, including 11 gold medals, out of India's total haul of 85 medals. Prime Minister Modi described this as 'a picture of a new India' at a felicitation event on 15 October.
Why did PM Modi specifically praise India's women athletes?
Modi singled out women athletes because they accounted for 38 of India's 85 medals — including 11 gold — a record that reflects growing participation and competitiveness across disciplines. He used the occasion to position their success as a symbol of social progress in modern India.
When did the Indian women's hockey team last win gold at the Asian Games?
The Indian women's hockey team won gold at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games for the first time in 44 years. Notably, both the men's and women's teams won gold in the same edition, which has never happened before in Asian Games history.
Who is Kumkum Mohod and what record did she set?
Kumkum Mohod is a 17-year-old archer who became the first Indian woman to win a gold medal in individual recurve archery at the Asian Games. She also won the team gold, defeating South Korea — the dominant force in the discipline — in both finals.
What was Mirabai Chanu's achievement at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games?
Mirabai Chanu won a silver medal in the women's 49 kg weightlifting category at Aichi-Nagoya, ending India's 28-year wait for an Asian Games weightlifting medal. The result completed a full set of major medals for her, adding to her Olympic, Commonwealth Games, and World Championship podium finishes.
