India wins maiden Asian Games medal in men's double sculls
What's the story
Indian rowers Satnam Singh and Salman Khan entered the record books, winning the country's first-ever medal in men's double sculls at the Asian Games. The duo won the bronze medal with a time of 6:13.25 at the Nagaragawa International Regatta Course in Nagoya on Thursday. They were second until the last 500m before finishing third, missing out on silver by 2.76 seconds.
Medal standings
Yi Xudi, Yide Nie of China win gold
China's Yi Xudi and Yide Nie took home the gold medal with a time of 6:09.37, while Uzbekistan's Pavel Sorin and Mekhrojbek Mamatkulov won silver after clocking 6:10.49.
The Indian duo finished 3.88 seconds behind the gold medalists.
Satnam had previously won bronze in men's quadruple sculls at the Hangzhou Asian Games, adding another medal to his collection this time around.
Near miss
Balraj Panwar finishes fourth in men's single sculls
In another development, Indian rower Balraj Panwar finished fourth in the men's single sculls final with a time of 6:54.80.
He was second at several marks (500m, 1,000m and 1,500m) before plunging to fourth in the final stretch.
China's Deng Zhiwei won gold (6:38.98), while Panwar finished 15.82 seconds behind him.
India's last medal in this category came at the Incheon Games in 2014 when Sawarn Singh won bronze.
Career shift
Satnam inspired by Olympian Swarn Singh Virk
Satnam Singh, a former national-level handball player, ventured into rowing nearly eight years ago.
The 26-year-old was inspired by Olympian Swarn Singh Virk, who won gold in men's lightweight double sculls at the 2018 Asian Games in Indonesia.
Hailing from Punjab's Mansa district, Satnam quickly became one of India's top rowers and represented the nation at the 2023 Youth Olympics.
Satnam also won gold at the 2023 Pune National Championships (single sculls).
Athletic path
Salman's journey from the Indian Army to rowing
His compatriot Salman Khan started his rowing journey in 2018 after joining the Bombay Engineering Group of the Indian Army.
Coaches Satywan, Satish Siraat, and Prabhat Mishra spotted the 28-year-old and picked him for their center's team.
Despite facing challenges along the way, Salman persevered with encouragement from his coaches and won gold at the 2022 National Games in Gujarat as well as an indoor national title that same year.