Not Enough, India’s Track & Field Haul At Glasgow 2026 Commonwealth Games

They were a far cry from their best. Yet, the likes of high jumper Anil Sarvesh Kushare, long jumper Murali Sreeshankar, and triple jumpers Praveen Chithravel and Selva Prabhu Thirumaran set the field events on fire during the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow.  Decathlete Tejaswin Shankar brought joy by winning a bronze. After the jumpers sustained the interest for a few days, India’s premier achiever in track and field for close to a decade, Neeraj Chopra, was the cynosure of all eyes in the Javelin throw The champion thrower of the spear was not a firm favourite to win the gold, with Sri Lanka’s Rumesh Pathirage closing the contest in the final with an 89.75 m in his second attempt, the only legal effort in six in the showdown. Chopra won the silver and Yash Vir Singh the bronze. Elsewhere in the track events, Gulveer Singh clinched the 5000m bronze and 10000m silver to prove that India has the wherewithal to shine in the long distance running events. He was the first Indian to win two medals in individual events at the Commonwealth Games. While the men picked up nine medals, only Seema Kaliramna (Bhiwani, Haryana) in the women’s progressed for a podium finish – in the discus throw. Only seven of the 29 entered (without the 4×400 men’s relay) ended up winning medals. The sprinters Gurindervir Singh and Animesh Kujur found the going tough within the 100m and 200m dash. India’s medal count, in track and field, at Glasgow was a modest 10 without the yellow metal. Very soon the athletes will compete in a difficult competition at the Asian Games in Japan. Gurindervir and Animesh will get a big opportunity to showcase their gifts.