New Delhi: The Indian women’s 4x100m relay team put in a stellar performance at the 2026 Asian Relay Championships, clocking a season-best time of 43.85 seconds to clinch the gold medal in a thrilling final against formidable challengers China.The quartet of Srabani Nanda, SS Sneha, Sudeshna Shivankar and Tamanna put on a near-flawless race, combining sharp baton exchanges and explosive finish speed to claim the silver medal ahead of China in 44.09 seconds. The Thai team won the bronze medal with a time of 44.11 seconds in an extremely fierce competition.Coached by Reliance Foundation’s Martin Owens, the Indian team executed the game plan with precision in what was one of their best relay performances in recent years.
Strong individual talent powers India’s campaign
The gold medal capped off a successful encounter for Tamanna and Sneha Shanuvalli, who bagged two medals each. Earlier, both had played a key role in India’s mixed 4x100m relay bronze medal race along with Animesh Kujur and Pranav Gurav.The mixed quartet finished third in 41.27 seconds, behind Thailand (41.14 seconds) and China (41.29 seconds), ensuring India remained competitive in the sprint relay.India also won silver in the 4x400m mixed relay, with a strong performance from the combination of Theerthesh P Shetty, MR Poovamma, Barath Sridhar and Neeru Pathak, finishing behind Vietnam in 3 minutes 17.06 seconds.Watch: Team India wins 4x100m gold
Mixed results in 4x400m relay
Despite success in the sprint events, India suffered a disappointment in the 4x400m relay. The women’s team consisting of MR Poovamma, Rashdeep Kaur, Ansa Babu and Saloni Nagar finished fourth with a time of 3 minutes 34.88 seconds, but Vietnam missed out on the podium by clinching the gold medal in a time of 3 minutes 31.16 seconds.In the men’s 4x400m relay, Theerthesh P Shetty, Avinash Kumar, Suraj Alagar Raja and Barath Sridhar finished fifth in a time of 3 minutes 05.33 seconds as the Vietnamese team once again dominated and won the gold medal.
India wins three medals
Overall, India finished the tournament with one gold, one silver and one bronze, underscoring India’s competitive but inconsistent nature across events. The absence of the men’s 4x100m team due to injury also affected overall medal potential.The 2026 event is an important preparation ahead of a packed calendar of athletics events, including the Commonwealth Games and Asian Games. India will host the Asian Relay Championships in Chandigarh in 2027.
