CWG 2026: Why athletics could be India’s biggest medal source in Glasgow | Commonwealth Games

For perhaps the first time, India arrives at a Commonwealth Games with genuine medal contenders spread across multiple disciplines in both track and field. From former Olympic javelin champion Neeraj Chopra to long jumper Murali Sreeshankar, and from distance runners Gulveer Singh to Parul Chaudhary, the country’s hopes are no longer concentrated on a single athlete or event. 

Instead, they are built around a squad that has produced national records, continental titles and world-class performances across throws, jumps, distance running and combined events.

That transformation was evident at Birmingham 2022, where India returned with eight athletics medals despite the absence of the biggest Indian name of the current era, Neeraj Chopra, due to injury.

Four years later, the squad is deeper, more experienced and more accomplished. With multiple athletes capable of challenging for the podium, Glasgow could become the Commonwealth Games where athletics emerges as India’s biggest medal-producing sport.

Full list of Indian athletes at the 2026 Commonwealth Games:

Why Glasgow has put athletics at the heart of India’s medal hopes

Their omission leaves athletics with an unprecedented opportunity to become India’s biggest medal-winning sport. Historically, India’s Commonwealth success has been driven by wrestling, weightlifting and boxing, while athletics has largely played a supporting role. Since the 2010 Delhi Games, wrestling has won 56 medals, weightlifting 41, boxing 28 and athletics 26.

Unlike boxing and weightlifting, where medal opportunities are restricted by weight categories and athlete quotas, athletics offers multiple chances across throws, jumps, distance running and combined events.

More importantly, India’s medal hopes are now spread across several world-class athletes rather than centred on a single star. That growing depth, coupled with the changing Commonwealth Games programme, gives athletics its best opportunity yet to emerge as the country’s leading medal contributor in Glasgow.

Sports dropped from Birmingham 2022 to Glasgow 2026:

From boom to bust

Looking back, the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi represented the high point of Indian athletics at the Commonwealth Games, while the next two editions served as a reality check.

Competing on home soil, India produced one of its finest performances in track and field, winning 12 medals, including historic golds by Krishna Poonia in the women’s discus throw and the women’s 4x400m relay team. Athletics accounted for nearly 12 per cent of India’s record 101-medal haul, underlining its status as one of the country’s leading medal-winning sports.

2022 brought back hope

In another turning point at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, Indian athletics delivered its best-ever overseas performance at the Commonwealth Games, even without the then Olympic champion Neeraj Chopra, who withdrew due to injury.

India won eight medals in athletics, including Eldhose Paul’s historic gold in the men’s triple jump, Murali Sreeshankar’s silver in the long jump, Avinash Sable’s silver in the 3,000m steeplechase, and medals in race walking and the women’s long jump.

The numbers underlined the revival. Athletics contributed more than 13 per cent of India’s total medals in Birmingham — the highest share since the Delhi Games — and nearly tripled its medal tally from each of the previous two editions.

India’s athletics performance at the last four Commonwealth Games:

Regular success has changed the narrative

The transformation began with Neeraj Chopra’s historic Olympic gold in Tokyo, but it did not end there. India followed it up with its best-ever performance at the 2023 Asian Games in Hangzhou, where athletics contributed 29 medals, the most by any Indian sport and nearly a quarter of the country’s record 107-medal haul.

The performance demonstrated that India’s success was no longer confined to the throwing events. Medals came in hurdles, relays, steeplechase, long jump, triple jump and race walking, highlighting the growing breadth of talent across disciplines.

That momentum has been reinforced at the continental level. India finished third at the 2023 Asian Athletics Championships with 27 medals before improving the quality of its performances at the 2025 edition, where it claimed 24 medals, including eight golds.

While the overall tally dipped slightly, the increase in gold medals reflected India’s growing ability to convert finalists into champions — an important indicator ahead of a multi-sport event such as the Commonwealth Games. 

India’s performances at major athletics events (last 6 yeras):

India’s top medal prospects in athletics in Glasgow

Neeraj Chopra (Men’s Javelin Throw)

Despite an injury-hit season, Neeraj Chopra remains one of India’s strongest medal prospects for Glasgow 2026. The Tokyo 2020 Olympic champion, Paris 2024 silver medallist, 2023 world champion and Diamond League winner is India’s only 90m thrower, holding the national record of 90.23m set in Doha in 2025.

He also won India’s first Commonwealth Games men’s javelin gold at Gold Coast 2018 with a throw of 86.47m. After missing the 2025 World Championships with a back injury, Chopra returned in June 2026, finishing fourth in Doha with 85.69m.

However, his journey to a medal will be anything but straightforward. His biggest challengers at the upcoming event will include Sri Lanka’s Rumesh Tharanga Pathirage, who has taken the javelin world by storm with his personal-best throw of 92.62m.

The 23-year-old also defeated Chopra at the Doha Diamond League 2026 with an 88.68m effort and currently sits second in the World Athletics rankings. This means that a podium finish for Neeraj would not be far-fetched, although his challenge for gold will require a strong performance.

Moreover, Pathirage will not be the only obstacle Neeraj must overcome for a podium finish, as he will also be up against the likes of Grenada’s Anderson Peters (PB 93.07m) and Kenya’s Julius Yego (PB 92.72m), who will also be among the strongest contenders for a podium finish.

Gulveer Singh (Men’s 5,000m and 10,000m)

Gulveer Singh has emerged as India’s biggest distance-running medal hope for Glasgow 2026 after rewriting national records. In 2025, he became the first Indian to break 13 minutes in the 5,000m (12:59.77) and set the 10,000m national record (27:00.22), rising to World No. 11 in the 10,000m.

He also became the first Indian to run a sub-four-minute mile (3:55.63) in 2026 and completed a historic 5,000m-10,000m double at the 2025 Asian Championships.

However, his path to the podium will not be unchallenged. His main opponents will include Uganda’s Jacob Kiplimo, the world half-marathon record holder (55:20) and Commonwealth Games 10,000m record holder (27:09.19), and Australia’s Ky Robinson, who has consistently run sub-13-minute 5,000m races. Kenya’s Nicholas Kipkorir and Cornelius Kemboi also strengthen the challenge, but Gulveer’s tactical racing could make him a genuine medal contender in Glasgow.

Parul Chaudhary (Women’s 3,000m Steeplechase and 5,000m)

If Gulveer Singh has transformed India’s men’s distance running, Parul Chaudhary has done the same on the women’s side. She has emerged as India’s leading women’s distance runner and one of the country’s strongest medal prospects for Glasgow 2026.

The 31-year-old holds the national record in the 3,000m steeplechase (9:12.46), set at the 2025 Asian Championships, and improved her 5,000m national record to 15:04.26 in France earlier this year.

She also clocked 9:12.84 at the 2026 Shanghai Diamond League, the second-fastest time by an Indian woman, and is ranked World No. 20 in the steeplechase. Parul won gold in the 5,000m and silver in the 3,000m steeplechase at the 2023 Asian Games. In Glasgow, she will face Olympic champion Peruth Chemutai (PB 8:48.03), world champion Faith Cherotich (sub-nine minutes) and England’s Elizabeth Bird.

However, Parul’s national record is now faster than the 9:15.68 she ran at the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games, making her a genuine medal contender in the steeplechase.

Murali Sreeshankar (Men’s Long Jump)

Another major medal hope for India heading into Glasgow is long jumper Murali Sreeshankar. The 2022 Commonwealth Games silver medallist has returned strongly from a knee injury, recording 8.38m at the National Inter-State Championships — his second-best career jump after his personal best of 8.41m in 2023.

He has crossed 8.00m in every competition this season, and his 8.38m is the best by any Commonwealth athlete in 2026 and among the world’s top 10 performances this year. Sreeshankar won Commonwealth silver (8.08m) in Birmingham 2022, followed by Asian Games silver and a top-eight finish at the 2023 World Championships.

His main challengers for a medal will include Jamaica’s Wayne Pinnock (PB 8.54m), Australia’s Liam Adcock (8.34m this season) and Jamaica’s Carey McLeod (PB 8.40m).

However, Sreeshankar’s season’s best already surpasses the Commonwealth Games record of 8.35m, making him a genuine gold contender.

Praveen Chithravel (Men’s Triple Jump)

Praveen Chithravel enters Glasgow 2026 as one of India’s leading field-event medal hopes after three years of remarkable consistency. The 25-year-old holds the national record of 17.37m, set in 2023 and equalled at the 2025 Federation Cup.

This season, he opened with 17.08m — the ninth-best jump in the world in 2026 — before winning the National Inter-State Championships with 16.92m. Praveen narrowly missed a medal at Birmingham 2022, finishing fourth, but has since won Asian Games bronze and silver medals at the 2025 Asian Championships and FISU World University Games.

Notably, Praveen’s 17.37m exceeds the Birmingham 2022 gold-winning mark of 16.92m and is just 6 cm short of the Commonwealth Games record of 17.43m, making him a genuine podium contender.

However, Jamaica’s Jaydon Hibbert (PB 17.80m) and Jordan Scott (PB 17.69m) will be the two rivals standing between Praveen and a podium finish in Glasgow, with superior personal bests that could make his medal bid more challenging.

Tejaswin Shankar (Men’s Decathlon)

Tejaswin Shankar has transformed himself from one of Asia’s top high jumpers into India’s leading decathlete, making him a strong medal prospect for Glasgow 2026. The 27-year-old became the first Indian to cross the 8,000-point barrier, setting a national record of 8,057 points in Ranchi after earlier scoring 7,947 in the US.

He also comfortably surpassed the AFI’s Commonwealth qualification mark of 7,787 points. Tejaswin’s biggest weapon remains the high jump, where he owns a personal best of 2.29m and earlier this year defeated Olympic silver medallist Shelby McEwen with a meeting record of 2.26m.

His main rivals include Grenada’s Lindon Victor (PB of more than 8,700 points), Australia’s Cedric Dubler (PB 8,393) and England’s Daniel Golubovic. With rapid improvements across events, another 100-150-point gain could put Tejaswin firmly in medal contention and potentially make him India’s first Commonwealth decathlon medallist.

Tajinderpal Singh Toor (Men’s Shot Put)

Tajinderpal Singh Toor heads to Glasgow 2026 as India’s most experienced shot putter and a strong medal contender despite recent injury setbacks. The 31-year-old holds the Asian and national record of 21.77m, set in 2023, and remains the only Indian to breach the 21.50m mark.

A two-time Asian Games champion and two-time Asian champion, Toor has shown signs of returning to form this season with throws of 21.03m in Delhi, 19.97m in Sangrur and 20.07m at the National Federation Cup.

New Zealand’s Tom Walsh (PB 22.90m), Jamaica’s Rajindra Campbell (PB 22m) and England’s Scott Lincoln, the Birmingham 2022 champion who has consistently thrown beyond 21m this season, will pose a daunting challenge for India’s seasoned campaigner in the race for the podium.

However, if Toor can regain the form that produced his 21.77m record, he has the ability to return to the Commonwealth Games podium in 2026.