What is India’s best finish at the Asian Games?

Indian hockey team members posing with their gold medals at the 2026 Asian Games. | Photo Credit: R.V. Moorthy

India’s fourth-place finish at the 2026 Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan, may not have produced its highest-ever medal haul, but it puts into perspective just how far the country has come at the continental multi-sport event.

India ended the Games with 85 medals — 21 gold, 27 silver and 37 bronze — finishing fourth in the overall medal table. It is only the third time that India has finished among the top four nations at an Asian Games.

But India’s best-ever finish on the Asian Games medal table came 75 years ago.

1951: India finishes second

At the inaugural Asian Games in New Delhi in 1951, India finished second behind Japan, its highest-ever position in the medal standings.

India won 51 medals — 15 gold, 16 silver and 20 bronze — across the six sports on the programme. Japan topped the table with 24 gold medals, while India finished ahead of Iran, the Philippines and other participating nations.

India came close to matching its 1951 performance at the 1962 Asian Games in Jakarta. It finished third with 10 gold, 13 silver and 10 bronze medals — 33 medals in all. It remains India’s second-highest finish in the overall standings.

After that, India did not finish higher than fifth until the 21st century.

More medals, but not a higher rank

India’s medal haul steadily grew in the later editions. It finished sixth at Guangzhou 2010 with 65 medals and eighth at both Incheon 2014 (57) and Jakarta-Palembang 2018. The 2018 Games produced 70 medals, then a record.

The breakthrough in terms of sheer numbers came at Hangzhou in 2023, held after a one-year postponement. India won 107 medals — 28 gold, 38 silver and 41 bronze.

It was the first time India crossed the 100-medal mark at the Asian Games. Yet despite that record haul, India finished fourth on the medal table, behind China, Japan and South Korea. The count of 28 gold was a record in itself.