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When the dust had settled on the 2026 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, the total number of medals won by the host country was 39, including six different sports, and a fourth-place finish. On paper, it was a decent performance. In practice, it meant overcoming significantly reduced expectations due to a sports program that was cut by more than half, and which had seen many of its traditional medal prospects.

Over the course of the next 11 days, Indian athletes will inspire others with their tenacity and determination, including coaches who helped their colleagues, powerlifters who helped e-rickshaws, and competitors who fought their way past government indifference.

The One-Man Army and the Giant Leaps: Commonwealth Games 2026

If any individual could be said to have embodied the ethos of India’s campaign, it was Tejaswin Shankar.

Having had to go to the court to be allowed to compete in the CWG, Shankar left a corporate job at Deloitte to take up the punishing multi-disciplinary sport of decathlon, finished third in the event in Glasgow, hobbling with a knee injury, set a national record in the process, and even found time to coach his own countrymen to medals when the Athletics Federation did not provide the necessary staff, registering India’s first-ever decathlon medal.

The field events were no less dramatic:

The Javelin Surprise: While Olympic champion Neeraj Chopra registered a superlative silver, the real hero of the event was 24-year-old Yash Vir Singh, who picked up bronze with a career-best throw of 85.41m, bettering his sixth and final attempt by over half a metre.

The Redemption Jumpers: Long Jumper Sreeshankar Murali, who missed out on an Olympic medal due to a patellar tendon rupture, and triple Jumper Praveen Chithravel, who missed out on a medal by a narrow margin of 3cm at the World Championships in 2022, both registered silver medals, completing journeys of redemption.

Gulveer’s Historic Double: Gulveer Singh made history by registering silver in the men’s 10,000m, an event traditionally dominated by Kenyan and Ethiopian runners, and followed it up with a bronze in the 5,000m, three days later.

Breakthroughs from Unexpected Corners

In Judo, 23-year-old Asmita Dey created one of the most inspirational wins of these Games. The judoka from a tiny village in Tripura, who had lived below the poverty line with her family, fought back from the losing position in the final to win India’s first-ever CWG Judo gold.

“I am from a very small village in Tripura. People there do not dream big,” said Dey, who will be dreaming big now.

In the boxing ring, India’s women made a spectacular showing, winning golds in five out of six bouts:

Sakshi Chaudhary (51kg)

Preeti Pawar (54kg)

Jaismine Lamboria (60kg)

Priya Ghanghas (60kg)

Arundhati Choudhary (70kg)

Lovlina Borgohain, on the other hand, made the most surprising medal win of these Games. The 75kg lifter, seeded way below the top names in the event, made the semis in a largely empty weight category and won silver in the process.

In a sport where the Indian contingent had to deal with the loss of a large number of athletes due to past doping charges, Mirabai Chanu made a solitary gold medal victory for the country. The Manipur weightlifter was overcome with emotion as the national anthem was played in tribute to her stunning win.

Triumph Over Adversity: The Para-Athletes

India’s para-athletes transformed personal hardship into absolute dominance, securing three remarkable double-podium finishes:

The nation’s first-ever medal in Glasgow was won by the powerlifter Jhandu Kumar. Kumar is an inspirational figure who battled through his polio to sell vegetables and e-rickshaws to afford training. He then went on to win bronze in Group B with sheer upper body strength and mental fortitude.

While the celebrations rightfully focus on the sportspeople on the field, Glasgow was yet another reminder of the hurdles the Indian sports ecosystem continues to present.

Lisha Das, a minor and the youngest-ever para-cyclist to represent India, was sent off without a female chaperone in violation of Sports Ministry guidelines. The teenager then had to resort to emails and court orders to get her accreditation. Due to the red tape, her chaperone was denied entry to the Field of Play, leaving the young girl to fend for herself at the most critical time of her sporting career.

Glasgow 2026 was another resounding success for Indian sportspeople, showcasing tremendous talent and heart. However, it is the stories of the country’s sportspeople and their difficulties off the field that remind us that the road to sporting excellence in India is still fraught with challenges. And unless the administration shows similar grit, it might as well be the last flag that will be lowered.