Asian Games sailing medals: Nethra Kumanan wins bronze as India adds three medals

Nethra Kumanan won bronze in the women’s dinghy while Harshita Tomar and Shital Verma were upgraded to bronze after China’s disqualification.

By All India Story

2 Oct 2026, 2:58 PM IST 2 min read

Nethra Kumanan won bronze in the women’s dinghy event at the Asian Games. — Asian Games sailing medals: Nethra Kumanan secured bronze in the women’s dinghy competition.

60In 60 wordsThe story at a glance

India added three more medals from sailing at the Asian Games on Friday, with Nethra Kumanan winning bronze in the women’s dinghy and Harshita Tomar and Shital Verma also receiving bronze in the women’s skiff event after a late change in the standings. The Asian Games sailing medals marked a significant moment for Nethra, who finally secured a podium finish at her fourth appearance at the continental event.

India added three more medals from sailing on Friday, with Asian Games sailing medals coming through Nethra Kumanan’s bronze in the women’s dinghy and Harshita Tomar and Shital Verma’s bronze in the women’s skiff event. The results gave India another strong contribution to its medal tally.

For Nethra, the bronze marked her first Asian Games medal after competing at the continental event three times previously. The 29-year-old Chennai sailor, a two-time Olympian, finished the women’s dinghy competition with 14 points overall.

Nethra collected seven points from the qualification races and another seven across the two final races. Thailand’s Sophia Montgomery won gold with five points, while Singapore’s Jania Ang took silver with 13.

Sailing uses a points-based system in which lower scores represent better performances. Competitors earn points according to their finishing positions in each race, making consistency crucial throughout the competition.

Nethra finished sixth in one of the two final races but bounced back strongly by winning the other. That result secured her place on the podium and ended a long wait that included fourth-place finishes at two previous Asian Games.

India narrowly missed another medal in the men’s event. Olympian Vishnu Saravanan finished second in both final races but ended fourth overall with 21 points because of his qualification score. Korea’s Jeemin Ha won gold, Hong Kong, China’s Nicholas Halliday claimed silver and Malaysia’s Mohd Khairulnizam finished third.

India’s medal tally from sailing increased further when Harshita Tomar and Shital Verma were upgraded to bronze in the women’s skiff event. The Indian pair had initially finished fourth before China’s team was disqualified.

The Chinese duo were disqualified under Rule 30.3 of the sailing regulations, commonly known as the U Flag rule. The rule applies when a boat, crew member or equipment enters a restricted triangular area between the starting line and the first mark during the final minute before the starting signal.

The disqualification changed the standings and moved the Indian pair into the bronze-medal position. For Indian sailing, the three medals represent another important contribution to the country’s Asian Games campaign, while Nethra’s podium finish adds a particularly significant milestone to her long continental journey.