Esha Singh wins Asian Games 25m pistol silver after gold-medal shoot-off

India’s Esha Singh won silver in the women’s 25m pistol at the 2026 Asian Games on September 28, taking the contest for gold all the way to a shoot-off in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan. Singh and China’s Xiao Jiaruixuan finished the regulation final level on 38 hits, equalling the Asian Games record. Xiao prevailed in the shoot-off, leaving Singh with her second consecutive individual silver in the event.

Kim Hyon Suk of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea took bronze with 34 hits. The result was decided only after Singh had survived an earlier series of shoot-offs against Kim to secure her place in the contest for gold.

From eighth in qualification to a record-equalling final

Singh entered the eight-athlete final in the last qualifying position. She scored 580 with 22 inner tens across the precision and rapid-fire stages, placing eighth. Chinese Taipei’s Cheng Yen-Ching also scored 580 but finished ninth with 20 inner tens, narrowly missing the final.

That qualifying position offered Singh no shortcut to a medal. In the final, however, she stayed in contention as the field narrowed. She reached 34 hits alongside Kim, then came through their tie-breaking exchanges to advance. Xiao and Singh both finished on 38, matching the Games record set in the previous edition. Their scores remained level through the regulation series before Xiao secured gold in the deciding shoot-off.

The final brought together three separate contests for Singh: first to make the eight-shooter field, then to stay ahead of the athletes facing elimination, and finally to challenge Xiao for the title. She began the day at the edge of qualification and ended it one shoot-off away from gold.

Vietnam’s Trinh Thu Vinh placed fourth with 30 hits. China’s Shang Kaiyan followed with 24, ahead of Chinese Taipei’s Tien Chia-Chen on 17, Iran’s Haniyeh Rostamiyan on 14 and the Republic of Korea’s Bong Seorin on 11.

A second individual silver for Singh

For Singh, the result echoed her performance at the previous Asian Games in Hangzhou, where she also won individual silver in the women’s 25m pistol. This time she came through qualification in eighth place and matched the Games record in the final, but Xiao held the advantage at the decisive moment.

Singh’s individual medal should not be confused with the separate women’s 25m pistol team result. China won that gold, followed by the Republic of Korea and Chinese Taipei. India finished fifth in the team standings, so Singh’s silver was the Indian medal from this event.

The two results show how the individual and team competitions reward different performances. The team places were determined from the combined qualifying scores of each nation’s shooters. The individual medals were settled later in an eight-athlete final, where Singh transformed an eighth-place qualifying finish into a place on the podium.

Where India’s tally stood

Singh’s silver was India’s first medal awarded on September 28. More medals followed across other sports that day. By the evening, India’s reported tally had reached 45: four gold, 20 silver and 21 bronze. A running medal table updated early on September 29 listed India 12th with 46 medals—four gold, 21 silver and 21 bronze. The later figure reflects an additional silver and should not be mistaken for India’s total when Singh’s final ended.

The Games continue until October 4, so the standings remain subject to change. Singh’s result, though, is settled: silver in the women’s 25m pistol after equalling the Games record and pushing the gold-medal contest to a shoot-off.