AICHI-NAGOYA — India’s campaign in the race walking events at the 2026 Asian Games proved to be a challenging affair, characterized by early disqualification, subpar finishing times, and a strict adherence to administrative silence off the course.

Across the four marathon and half-marathon race walk events staged at the Games, India fielded a minimal contingent, entering athletes solely in the women’s marathon race walk. National hopes were placed entirely on the duo of Priyanka Goswami and Manju Rani, but the event quickly turned into a difficult outing for the squad.

Priyanka’s race ended prematurely just 9 kilometers into the course. The experienced race walker received four red cards—two for loss of contact and two for knee flexion—resulting in an immediate disqualification and cutting short her campaign early in the competition.

Meanwhile, Manju Rani managed to cross the finish line but struggled to find her top form. She finished last in the field with a time of 3:40:17, lagging nearly seven minutes behind her personal best (PB) of 3:33:24.

The disappointing results come despite India investing in specialized international guidance for its race walking program. The team traveled with acclaimed German coach Ronald Weigel to bolster their technical preparation and performance on the continental stage.

However, the post-event narrative offered little immediate clarity. When sports media outlet NNIS Sports approached Weigel for an interview following the event to discuss the team’s performance, the German coach declined to comment. Weigel noted that he was bound by protocol and could not speak publicly without official clearance from the Athletics Federation of India (AFI).

With the race walking events concluded, attention turns to how the federation will address both the technical shortcomings on the road and the governance surrounding team communications moving forward.