CWG 2026: Worth the wait! Asmita and Harsh seal historic golden double in judo
CWG 2026: Breaking a decades-long drought, Asmita Dey and Harsh Singh clinched India's first-ever Commonwealth Games judo gold medals on a historic Friday, before Yamini Mourya's silver capped the nation's finest campaign on the mat.
Prior to Friday at the Commonwealth Games, the story of Indian judo on the international stage was defined by a glass ceiling. 11 medals had reached the cabinet across previous editions, five silvers, six bronzes, yet the top step of the podium had remained stubbornly out of reach since the sport’s inclusion at Auckland in 1990.
In the space of a single, exhilarating afternoon on the mat in Glasgow, that decades-long drought was shattered not once, but twice. Led by emotion, endurance, and tactical precision, Asmita Dey and Harsh Singh scripted history by delivering India’s first-ever judo gold medals at the Games, before Yamini Mourya added a valiant silver to mark the nation’s finest campaign in the discipline.
Commonwealth Games July 31: Highlights
TEARS AND TRIUMPH FOR ASMITA DEY
For 23-year-old Asmita Dey, who etched her name into the record books in the women’s 48kg division, the golden breakthrough was steeped in deeply personal grief. Seven months prior to her triumph, her father, a bicycle mechanic who earned barely Rs 300 a day to support his family in a modest mud house in Tripura, died due a sudden brain stroke. He had been the primary engine behind her sporting ambitions, supporting her through financial adversity and even taking her to Delhi for medical treatment when a severe knee injury threatened to end her career.
Devastated by her loss in December, Asmita Dey contemplated abandoning the mat altogether. It was her mother who intervened ten days after the funeral, insisting she return to the Sports Authority of India centre in Bhopal.
"If I stop you today, your father will think I am shattering your dreams," her mother had urged.
Asmita carried that heavy emotional load into Glasgow, battling severe pre-tournament anxiety and sleepless nights.
"Before this medal, I was unable to sleep in India. I used to stay awake thinking about the fights," she admitted.
"When I reached here, I felt very anxious thinking what will happen. I just kept thinking I have to beat everyone and win."
Her sheer resolve prevailed on the big stage. The Uttar Pradesh police officer produced a clinical display to capture gold, dedicating the historic feat to the memory of the man who laid its foundation.
Facing Canada’s Heidi Quach in the women’s -48kg final, Asmita Dey mounted a dramatic comeback after conceding an early yuko score and picking up a shido penalty in regulation time. Showing immense composure, the 23-year-old stepped up her aggression midway through the bout to execute a sharp throw, scoring a leveling yuko and forcing the deadlocked contest into sudden-death Golden Score overtime. Under relentless pressure, Dey launched a decisive attack near the edge of the mat to score the match-winning yuko, sealing a hard-fought 2–1 victory.
HARSH SINGH UPSET SEALS DOUBLE GOLD
Shortly after Dey’s breakthrough, 23-year-old debutant Harsh Singh made it a golden double in the men’s -60kg category, putting on a masterclass in tactical discipline against Australia’s decorated Olympian Joshua Katz.
Facing a veteran opponent who brought Oceania titles and a Birmingham 2022 bronze to the contest, Harsh Singh remained unflappable through a tense, cagey bout. With just 41 seconds remaining on the clock, the young Indian executed a brilliant waza-ari before defending resolutely until the final bell to seal a famous upset.
"Hearing the national anthem on such a big stage because of me feels very special," Singh said after his win, dedicating the medal to his mother. "There was pressure, but my seniors and family never let me feel it."
Yamini Mourya Adds Silver
India’s bid for a clean sweep of three golds was only denied in the women’s 57kg final, where Sagar-born Yamini Mourya fell just short after an exhausting, seven-minute battle against England’s Acelya Toprak.
Matching the 2022 silver medallist blow for blow through four minutes of regulation time, the 28-year-old pushed the contest deep into Golden Score. However, a third shido (penalty) for passivity three minutes into extra time resulted in a disqualification, handing Mourya a well-earned silver medal.
With Unnati Sharma (women's 63kg) and Karanjit Singh Mann (men's 90kg) set to take the mat on Saturday, India’s record-breaking judo contingent enters the weekend with their sights set on extending a landmark tally.
Prior to Friday at the Commonwealth Games, the story of Indian judo on the international stage was defined by a glass ceiling. 11 medals had reached the cabinet across previous editions, five silvers, six bronzes, yet the top step of the podium had remained stubbornly out of reach since the sport’s inclusion at Auckland in 1990.
In the space of a single, exhilarating afternoon on the mat in Glasgow, that decades-long drought was shattered not once, but twice. Led by emotion, endurance, and tactical precision, Asmita Dey and Harsh Singh scripted history by delivering India’s first-ever judo gold medals at the Games, before Yamini Mourya added a valiant silver to mark the nation’s finest campaign in the discipline.
Commonwealth Games July 31: Highlights
TEARS AND TRIUMPH FOR ASMITA DEY
For 23-year-old Asmita Dey, who etched her name into the record books in the women’s 48kg division, the golden breakthrough was steeped in deeply personal grief. Seven months prior to her triumph, her father, a bicycle mechanic who earned barely Rs 300 a day to support his family in a modest mud house in Tripura, died due a sudden brain stroke. He had been the primary engine behind her sporting ambitions, supporting her through financial adversity and even taking her to Delhi for medical treatment when a severe knee injury threatened to end her career.
Devastated by her loss in December, Asmita Dey contemplated abandoning the mat altogether. It was her mother who intervened ten days after the funeral, insisting she return to the Sports Authority of India centre in Bhopal.
"If I stop you today, your father will think I am shattering your dreams," her mother had urged.
Asmita carried that heavy emotional load into Glasgow, battling severe pre-tournament anxiety and sleepless nights.
"Before this medal, I was unable to sleep in India. I used to stay awake thinking about the fights," she admitted.
"When I reached here, I felt very anxious thinking what will happen. I just kept thinking I have to beat everyone and win."
Her sheer resolve prevailed on the big stage. The Uttar Pradesh police officer produced a clinical display to capture gold, dedicating the historic feat to the memory of the man who laid its foundation.
Facing Canada’s Heidi Quach in the women’s -48kg final, Asmita Dey mounted a dramatic comeback after conceding an early yuko score and picking up a shido penalty in regulation time. Showing immense composure, the 23-year-old stepped up her aggression midway through the bout to execute a sharp throw, scoring a leveling yuko and forcing the deadlocked contest into sudden-death Golden Score overtime. Under relentless pressure, Dey launched a decisive attack near the edge of the mat to score the match-winning yuko, sealing a hard-fought 2–1 victory.
HARSH SINGH UPSET SEALS DOUBLE GOLD
Shortly after Dey’s breakthrough, 23-year-old debutant Harsh Singh made it a golden double in the men’s -60kg category, putting on a masterclass in tactical discipline against Australia’s decorated Olympian Joshua Katz.
Facing a veteran opponent who brought Oceania titles and a Birmingham 2022 bronze to the contest, Harsh Singh remained unflappable through a tense, cagey bout. With just 41 seconds remaining on the clock, the young Indian executed a brilliant waza-ari before defending resolutely until the final bell to seal a famous upset.
"Hearing the national anthem on such a big stage because of me feels very special," Singh said after his win, dedicating the medal to his mother. "There was pressure, but my seniors and family never let me feel it."
Yamini Mourya Adds Silver
India’s bid for a clean sweep of three golds was only denied in the women’s 57kg final, where Sagar-born Yamini Mourya fell just short after an exhausting, seven-minute battle against England’s Acelya Toprak.
Matching the 2022 silver medallist blow for blow through four minutes of regulation time, the 28-year-old pushed the contest deep into Golden Score. However, a third shido (penalty) for passivity three minutes into extra time resulted in a disqualification, handing Mourya a well-earned silver medal.
With Unnati Sharma (women's 63kg) and Karanjit Singh Mann (men's 90kg) set to take the mat on Saturday, India’s record-breaking judo contingent enters the weekend with their sights set on extending a landmark tally.
Prior to Friday at the Commonwealth Games, the story of Indian judo on the international stage was defined by a glass ceiling. 11 medals had reached the cabinet across previous editions, five silvers, six bronzes, yet the top step of the podium had remained stubbornly out of reach since the sport’s inclusion at Auckland in 1990.
In the space of a single, exhilarating afternoon on the mat in Glasgow, that decades-long drought was shattered not once, but twice. Led by emotion, endurance, and tactical precision, Asmita Dey and Harsh Singh scripted history by delivering India’s first-ever judo gold medals at the Games, before Yamini Mourya added a valiant silver to mark the nation’s finest campaign in the discipline.
Commonwealth Games July 31: Highlights
TEARS AND TRIUMPH FOR ASMITA DEY
For 23-year-old Asmita Dey, who etched her name into the record books in the women’s 48kg division, the golden breakthrough was steeped in deeply personal grief. Seven months prior to her triumph, her father, a bicycle mechanic who earned barely Rs 300 a day to support his family in a modest mud house in Tripura, died due a sudden brain stroke. He had been the primary engine behind her sporting ambitions, supporting her through financial adversity and even taking her to Delhi for medical treatment when a severe knee injury threatened to end her career.
Devastated by her loss in December, Asmita Dey contemplated abandoning the mat altogether. It was her mother who intervened ten days after the funeral, insisting she return to the Sports Authority of India centre in Bhopal.
"If I stop you today, your father will think I am shattering your dreams," her mother had urged.
Asmita carried that heavy emotional load into Glasgow, battling severe pre-tournament anxiety and sleepless nights.
"Before this medal, I was unable to sleep in India. I used to stay awake thinking about the fights," she admitted.
"When I reached here, I felt very anxious thinking what will happen. I just kept thinking I have to beat everyone and win."
Her sheer resolve prevailed on the big stage. The Uttar Pradesh police officer produced a clinical display to capture gold, dedicating the historic feat to the memory of the man who laid its foundation.
Facing Canada’s Heidi Quach in the women’s -48kg final, Asmita Dey mounted a dramatic comeback after conceding an early yuko score and picking up a shido penalty in regulation time. Showing immense composure, the 23-year-old stepped up her aggression midway through the bout to execute a sharp throw, scoring a leveling yuko and forcing the deadlocked contest into sudden-death Golden Score overtime. Under relentless pressure, Dey launched a decisive attack near the edge of the mat to score the match-winning yuko, sealing a hard-fought 2–1 victory.
HARSH SINGH UPSET SEALS DOUBLE GOLD
Shortly after Dey’s breakthrough, 23-year-old debutant Harsh Singh made it a golden double in the men’s -60kg category, putting on a masterclass in tactical discipline against Australia’s decorated Olympian Joshua Katz.
Facing a veteran opponent who brought Oceania titles and a Birmingham 2022 bronze to the contest, Harsh Singh remained unflappable through a tense, cagey bout. With just 41 seconds remaining on the clock, the young Indian executed a brilliant waza-ari before defending resolutely until the final bell to seal a famous upset.
"Hearing the national anthem on such a big stage because of me feels very special," Singh said after his win, dedicating the medal to his mother. "There was pressure, but my seniors and family never let me feel it."
Yamini Mourya Adds Silver
India’s bid for a clean sweep of three golds was only denied in the women’s 57kg final, where Sagar-born Yamini Mourya fell just short after an exhausting, seven-minute battle against England’s Acelya Toprak.
Matching the 2022 silver medallist blow for blow through four minutes of regulation time, the 28-year-old pushed the contest deep into Golden Score. However, a third shido (penalty) for passivity three minutes into extra time resulted in a disqualification, handing Mourya a well-earned silver medal.
With Unnati Sharma (women's 63kg) and Karanjit Singh Mann (men's 90kg) set to take the mat on Saturday, India’s record-breaking judo contingent enters the weekend with their sights set on extending a landmark tally.
