Elavenil Valarivan’s two silver medals gave India a start at the Asian Games.
The team silver came in the women’s 10m air rifle behind China.
The individual silver made her the first Indian woman to win it in that event.
The Games run from September 19 to October 4.
India’s other athletes were in action in hockey, teqball and cricket.
Teqball player Quimcy Dsouza was scheduled to play bronze medal matches on the same morning.
The Indian men’s hockey team, the defending champions, began their campaign against Indonesia, while the women’s team played Uzbekistan.
The India women’s cricket team also reached the final on Sunday, which assures the country of another medal.
Shooter Manu Bhaker, who carried the flag at the opening ceremony, is scheduled to compete in the 10m air pistol, 25m pistol and mixed team 10m air pistol events.
Shooting is one of the sports in which India has traditionally targeted several medals at the Asian Games.
The women’s 10m air rifle events began at 6:15 am IST on Sunday, among the first medal events on the day.
India opened its medal account at the Asian Games 2026 on Sunday, September 20, with two silver medals in the women’s 10m air rifle events.
The Indian team of Elavenil Valarivan, Sonam Maskar and Vidarsa Vinod finished second behind China in the team event.
Elavenil Valarivan then won silver in the individual women’s 10m air rifle event.
The individual silver made her the first Indian woman to win an Asian Games silver medal in the women’s 10m air rifle individual event.
The Asian Games are being held in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan, from September 19 to October 4, 2026, and cover 43 sports.
India has sent a contingent of 503 athletes competing across 36 sports.
At the time of the report, Japan led the table with three golds and three bronzes, followed by China with two golds, four silvers and one bronze.
Toyota Stadium, Aichi, Japan (representative image), Wikimedia Commons, CC0
