NEW DELHI: Indian distance runner Gulveer Singh continued his impressive campaign at the Asian Games 2026, winning his second silver medal in Japan with a personal best performance in the men’s 1500m final on Monday.Gulveer clocked 3:36.72 to finish second behind Japan’s Kazuto Iizawa, who clinched gold, while another Japanese runner, Nagiya Mori, took bronze in 3:37.92. India’s other finalist, Yoonus Shah, finished ninth with a time of 3:43.88.The silver added to Gulveer’s medal collection at the ongoing Games, having already secured a second-place finish in the men’s 10,000m. His latest podium finish also provided a bright spot for Indian athletics on a day when defending champion Avinash Sable missed out on a medal in the 3000m steeplechase.Gulveer’s double silver underlined his consistency across two demanding distance events, as he improved his personal best in the 1500m to finish among the leading runners in the field.Asian Games Full Coverage | Medal Tally | Schedule
Vithya breaks PT Usha’s record with 400m hurdles bronze
Earlier, Vithya Ramraj delivered a historic performance in the women’s 400m hurdles, winning bronze with a personal best of 54.75 seconds and breaking a national record that had stood for more than four decades.The 28-year-old from Coimbatore finished behind UAE’s Mariam Kareem, who won gold in a Games-record 54.31 seconds, and Kazakhstan’s Adelina Zems, who took silver in a personal best of 54.58.Vithya bettered the 55.42 seconds recorded by legendary Indian athlete PT Usha at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics. It was her second medal at the Games, following silver in the 4x400m mixed relay.India’s Anu Raghavan finished fifth in the final with a personal best of 55.88 seconds.
Sable’s title defence ends in disappointment
The day’s biggest setback for India came in the men’s 3000m steeplechase, where defending champion and Games record holder Avinash Sable finished fourth despite clocking a season-best 8:21.67.The 32-year-old two-time Olympian from Maharashtra, who has been troubled by injuries, finished 4.31 seconds behind Japan’s Ryuji Miura, who won gold in a Games-record 8:17.36. Miura’s compatriot Ryoma Aoki claimed silver in a personal best of 8:17.60, while Qatar’s Zakaria Elahlaami took bronze in 8:18.13.Sable’s failure to defend his title was a major disappointment for India, particularly after he had established himself as one of the country’s leading distance runners.There was further frustration in the women’s discus throw, where Commonwealth Games bronze medallist Seema Kaliramna finished fourth despite recording a personal best of 59.88m in her fifth attempt. All three medal winners crossed the 60m mark.In the men’s 400m hurdles, Santosh Kumar Tamilarasan finished seventh in the eight-man final with a timing of 49.95 seconds.
