Indian marathon runner Sawan Barwal created history on Day 8 of the 2026 Asian Games by winning the silver medal in the men’s marathon. Barwal finished the race in 2 hours, 11 minutes and 37 seconds, setting a new national record in the process.
Japan’s Ichitaka Yamashita won the gold medal after pulling away from the leading group during the closing stages. China’s Peiyou Feng took the bronze medal. Barwal’s silver ended India’s 44-year wait for an Asian Games marathon medal, with the country’s previous medal in the event coming at the 1982 Delhi Games.
Barwal remained among the leading runners for most of the race. He was in second place at the halfway point with a time of 1:05:54 and maintained his position as the runners approached the final stages. Yamashita eventually created a gap, but Barwal held on to second place and secured the silver.
The performance also improved Barwal’s own national record. He had set the previous mark of 2:11:58 at the Rotterdam Marathon earlier this year. His Asian Games performance reduced that time by 21 seconds.
Barwal’s achievement was particularly notable because this was only his second competitive marathon. The 28-year-old Indian Army athlete had previously competed mainly in track events before making the move to the longer distance.
India had several other medal opportunities on Day 8. The day’s schedule included major events in athletics, shooting, kabaddi, squash, badminton, archery, hockey and other sports. Both the Indian men’s and women’s kabaddi teams were also scheduled to face Iran in their respective gold-medal matches.
In badminton, PV Sindhu and other Indian players were among those competing as India continued its campaign in the tournament. India’s women’s badminton team had earlier lost 1-3 to hosts Japan in the quarterfinals, with Sindhu among the Indian players defeated in the tie.
Barwal’s marathon silver added another significant medal to India’s campaign in Aichi-Nagoya. His performance also brought renewed attention to Indian distance running after more than four decades without an Asian Games marathon medal.
With several other Indian athletes competing across different disciplines on Day 8, India continued its campaign for more medals at the 2026 Asian Games.