Asian Games 2026: Lovlina Borgohain and India’s women’s recurve team win gold on October 2

India won two Asian Games gold medals on October 2, 2026: Lovlina Borgohain defeated China’s Bao Ziyi in the women’s 75kg boxing final, and the women’s recurve archery team beat South Korea for a first Indian title in that event. The victories at the Aichi-Nagoya Games raised India’s gold count from 10 to 12. Other confirmed results during the day took the overall medal tally to 71: 12 gold, 25 silver and 34 bronze.

Lovlina turns Asian Games silver into gold

Borgohain won the boxing final by a unanimous 5-0 judges’ decision, securing her first Asian Games gold on her 29th birthday. She had reached the women’s 75kg final at the previous Games in Hangzhou, held in 2023, but finished with silver after losing to China’s Li Qian. Her win over Bao gave her a second Asian Games medal and the title that had eluded her three years earlier.

The result also ended India’s wait for another women’s boxing gold at the Asian Games. MC Mary Kom had been the country’s only woman to win one, taking the flyweight title in 2014. Borgohain is now the second. That distinction concerns Asian Games gold medals specifically: Borgohain had already won major honours in boxing, including an Olympic bronze, before Friday’s final.

Her route to the title included a close semifinal against Kazakhstan’s Natalya Bogdanova, which she won by a 3-2 split decision. The final produced a clearer verdict, with all five judges awarding the bout to Borgohain. Bao took silver in the 75kg category.

A first for India in women’s recurve

In Okazaki, Ankita Bhakat, Kirti Sharma and Kumkum Anil Mohod defeated South Korea 5-3 in the women’s recurve team final. It was India’s first Asian Games gold in the event and its first appearance in the women’s recurve team title match. India had previously won bronze in the event at the Hangzhou Games.

The Indian trio reached the final by beating China 5-1 in the semifinal. Against South Korea, the first two sets were tied at 54-54 and 56-56, leaving the match level at 2-2. India then won the third set 55-51 to move ahead 4-2. A 54-54 tie in the fourth gave each side another set point, enough for India to reach the five points needed for gold.

South Korea’s defeat made the result notable beyond India’s first title. Its women had won seven consecutive Asian Games recurve team golds, beginning in 1998. The distinction is important: India had already enjoyed success in compound archery, but this was a breakthrough in the separate recurve event.

What changed in the medal tally?

The two finals contributed one gold each, taking India from 10 golds to 12. They were not the only medals confirmed on October 2. Kumkum returned with Dhiraj Bommadevara to win mixed recurve team silver after a 5-3 final defeat to China. India’s men’s recurve team also took silver, losing 5-1 to South Korea, while sailor Nethra Kumanan won bronze in the women’s dinghy event.

Those additional results explain why the overall tally rose by more than the two golds at the centre of the day’s story. The confirmed count after the men’s recurve final stood at 71 medals, including 25 silvers and 34 bronzes. For Borgohain, the day meant upgrading her Asian Games silver to gold; for India’s women archers, it meant winning a recurve team title the country had never held.