Glasgow, July 28: Indian athletes continued their campaign across multiple disciplines on Day 5 of the 2026 Commonwealth Games, with encouraging performances in athletics, swimming and para swimming, while the country’s weightlifters prepared for another opportunity to extend their medal-winning run.
In athletics, national record holder Vishal TK secured a place in the men’s 400m semi-finals after finishing second in his heat with a time of 46.49 seconds. His performance placed him among the top 16 qualifiers, earning him a berth in the next round scheduled for Thursday.
However, fellow Indian Rajesh Ramesh bowed out of the competition after clocking 47.43 seconds in his heat, falling short of the qualification mark for the semi-finals.India also made progress in swimming as Srihari Nataraj qualified for the men’s 100m backstroke semi-finals. He finished fifth in his heat with a timing of 55.58 seconds, placing 13th overall to advance to the next stage.
Sajan Prakash, meanwhile, missed out on a place in the men’s 50m butterfly semi-finals after finishing eighth in his heat. His time of 24.94 seconds left him outside the top 16 qualifiers.In para swimming, Ravi Veera Venkata Bhavani Karthik Budigna and Imam Ali advanced to the men’s S13 50m freestyle final. Budigna qualified with a time of 26.33 seconds, while Imam Ali secured the final qualifying spot after clocking 28.41 seconds.
Both are set to compete for medals later in the day.Weightlifting continued to be one of India’s strongest disciplines at the Games. Nirupama Devi Seram was scheduled to compete in the women’s 63kg final, aiming to maintain India’s perfect medal record in the sport after all six Indian lifters who had competed earlier finished on the podium.
Later in the competition, Harjinder Kaur was also set to contest the women’s 69kg category.India’s boxing contingent also entered a crucial stage, with five boxers featuring in quarter-final bouts. Victories would guarantee each boxer at least a bronze medal under the competition’s format.
The country entered Day 5 with confidence after a successful previous day that saw medals in weightlifting, athletics and para athletics, taking India’s overall tally to 10 medals.
With several finals and knockout events still to come, the Indian contingent remains in contention to further strengthen its medal haul in Glasgow.
