By Sushant Singh

India’s mixed 4×100m relay team secured a bronze medal at the Asian Relays Championships 2026, finishing with a time of 41.47 seconds.

Pranav provided a solid start, while Tamanna and Animesh kept India in contention, with the team leading heading into the final exchange. However, a delayed baton handover between Animesh and anchor runner Sneha cost valuable time, allowing Thailand and China to move ahead in the closing stages.

Thailand claimed the gold medal in 41.14 seconds, followed by China with 41.29 seconds, while India completed the podium with a bronze-winning effort of 41.47 seconds.

Bureau Report

Asian Relays Championships 2026 | June 20–21

After a Federation Cup that produced national records in sprints, pole vault, and high jump, the spotlight now shifts to the track’s most collective discipline — the relay. India’s relay teams are set for action across two days at the Asian Relays Championships 2026, with mixed, men’s, and women’s squads all competing for continental honours.

The Schedule (All Timings IST)

Saturday, June 20

Sunday, June 21

Five finals. Two days. A packed and high-stakes relay calendar for Team India.

The Squads

Men’s 4x400m & Mixed 4x400m

India’s men’s quarter-mile stocks run deep, with eight athletes named across the pool for these events: Theerthesh P Shetty, Avinash Kumar, Setu Mishra, Nihal William, S Santhosh, Rince Joseph, Suraj Alagar Raja, Mohit Kumar, and Barath Sridhar. With this much depth on the roster, India’s selectors have options to fine-tune their strongest possible combination for both the standalone men’s final and the mixed relay.

Mixed 4x100m

A compact trio anchors India’s mixed sprint relay effort: Animesh Kujur, Harsh Santosh Raut, and Pranav Gaurav. Kujur arrives with serious pedigree — having recently broken the national 100m record at Federation Cup with a blistering 10.15s. His sprint speed could prove decisive in what is traditionally one of the most unpredictable relay formats on the circuit.

Women’s 4x400m & Mixed 4x400m

India’s women’s quarter-mile group is stacked with experience and emerging talent: Rashdeep Kaur, MR Poovamma, Ansa Babu, Vijaykumari GK, Saloni Nagar, Neeru Pathak, Subha Venkatesan, and Gowrinandana. The inclusion of MR Poovamma — one of Indian athletics’ most decorated relay campaigners — brings invaluable big-stage experience to a squad otherwise blending fresh faces into the mix.

Women’s 4x100m & Mixed 4x100m

India’s sprint relay hopes rest with Nithya Gandhe, Tamanna, Sneha SS, Sudeshna Shivankar, and Srabani Nanda. Srabani Nanda’s experience at the international level adds composure to a sprint unit that will need slick exchanges to compete with the continent’s fastest nations.

Why the Relays Matter

Relay events carry a unique weight in athletics — they are tests of speed, yes, but also of precision, trust, and team chemistry. A single fumbled baton exchange can undo months of individual training in a fraction of a second. For India, a nation that has produced increasingly competitive individual sprinters and quarter-milers in 2026, the relay events are where that talent must come together as one unit against Asia’s best.

With strong individual performances already on the board this season — national records in the 100m, depth in the 400m, and rising sprint talent across the board — India’s relay squads arrive in good spirits and even better form.

Time to Cheer

Two days. Five finals. Squads built on a blend of seasoned campaigners and hungry newcomers. India’s baton-carriers are ready to take on the continent’s finest.

Get behind Team India as the Asian Relays Championships 2026 gets underway.

India’s women’s 4x100m relay team delivered another commanding performance on the international stage, clinching gold at the New Taipei City Athletics Open 2026 while equalling the Championship Record of 44.07 seconds.

The quartet of Srabani, Sneha, Sudheshna and Tamanna combined brilliantly to dominate the race from start to finish. Srabani gave India a solid start on the opening leg before Sneha maintained the momentum through the second exchange. Sudheshna then produced a blistering third leg to extend India’s advantage, setting the stage for Tamanna to bring the baton home with a strong anchor leg.

The winning time of 44.07 seconds carried a special significance. Not only did it secure another gold medal for India, but it also matched the Championship Record set by the Indian team at the same competition last year.

Remarkably, India had won gold at the 2025 edition of the New Taipei City Athletics Open in exactly the same time — 44.07 seconds — making this year’s triumph a near-perfect repeat of their success from twelve months ago.

While the result underlined India’s superiority at the meet, the team has already shown that there is even more speed in reserve. Their best performance over the past two years came at the Asian Athletics Championships in 2025, where the quartet clocked an impressive 43.86 seconds, becoming one of the few Asian teams capable of regularly breaking the 44-second barrier.

That benchmark will be firmly in their sights as preparations continue for the Asian Games. In sprint relays, consistency is often as important as outright speed, and India’s women have steadily established themselves as one of the continent’s most reliable relay units.

The performance in New Taipei City offered further evidence of that growing stability. Clean baton exchanges, strong individual legs and a winning mentality helped India comfortably secure another international title while matching the meet record they already owned.

With the Asian Games on the horizon, India’s women’s sprint relay team will be aiming to convert this consistency into even faster times. If they can produce a few more sub-44-second performances in the coming months, they could emerge as genuine medal contenders against Asia’s strongest sprint relay nations.

For now, however, the team can celebrate another gold medal, another Championship Record, and another reminder that Indian women’s sprinting continues to move in the right direction.

India’s U20 women’s 4x400m relay team delivered a commanding performance to win the gold medal at the U20 Asian Athletics Championships 2026 in Hong Kong, capping off a memorable campaign with a new championship record.

The Indian quartet stormed to victory in a time of 3:38.07, breaking the previous meet record and underlining the country’s growing strength in the one-lap relay event. The performance was one of the standout moments of the championships and added another gold medal to India’s impressive tally in Hong Kong.

From the opening leg, the Indian team established itself among the frontrunners and maintained a strong rhythm throughout the race. Smooth baton exchanges and consistent splits ensured that India remained in control as the race progressed. By the final leg, the team had created a decisive advantage over its rivals, allowing the anchor runner to bring home the gold in record-breaking fashion.

The winning time of 3:38.07 not only secured the top spot on the podium but also erased the previous championship mark, highlighting the exceptional quality of the performance. The result further reinforces India’s reputation as one of Asia’s strongest relay nations at the junior level.

The gold medal was particularly significant given the depth of competition at the championships, with several Asian nations fielding strong relay squads. India’s ability to dominate the race and set a new meet record showcased both the talent and preparation of the young team.

The victory also reflects the steady progress of women’s sprinting and relay events in India. In recent years, Indian relay teams have enjoyed increasing success at continental and global competitions, and the latest triumph suggests that another promising generation is emerging through the junior ranks.

The gold-medal-winning performance played a key role in India’s successful overall campaign at the U20 Asian Athletics Championships, where the country finished second on the medal table with 19 medals.

Indian sprinting is experiencing an unprecedented golden era, yet its men’s 4x100m relay dreams are collapsing under the weight of poor planning, technical failures, and internal friction.

The renaissance began in October 2023 when Army sprinter Manikanta Hoblidhar clocked 10.23s, shattering Amiya Mallick’s seven-year-old national record. By 2025, Indian sprinting reached a historic peak. Gurindervir Singh lowered the national record to 10.20s, only for Animesh Kujur to obliterate it three months later with a current national record of 10.18s. In 2025 alone, five Indian sprinters combined for a staggering nine sub-10.30s performances:

10.18s – Animesh Kujur

10.19s – Manikanta Hoblidhar

10.20s – Gurindervir Singh

10.22s – Tamilarasu

10.27s – Pranav Gurav

This explosive depth ignited hope for a competitive men’s 4x100m relay squad. In April 2025, that dream looked tangible when the Reliance-backed quartet of Animesh, Manikanta, Gurindervir, and Amlan Borgohain shattered a 15-year-old national record, clocking 38.69s. Suddenly, India was a genuine medal contender for the 2026 Asian Games.

Instead, what followed has been a story of squandered potential.

Despite a promising win at the Taiwan Athletics Open (38.75s) and promises of “special focus” from AFI spokesperson Adille Sumariwalla, the team has repeatedly found itself in the headlines for the wrong reasons.

In a single year, India was disqualified three separate times under World Athletics Technical Rule 24.7 for passing the baton outside the designated takeover zone:

1. The 2025 Asian Athletics Championships

2. The Open Invitational Relays in Chandigarh

3. Day 2 of the World Relays (following a lacklustre 39.07s run on Day 1)

The recurring technical failures point to a deeper problem. Speaking anonymously to NNIS Sports, a prominent sprint coach blamed the leadership: “The coaching is not up to the mark. That is evident in the way the athletes are exchanging the baton. Team planning has also been poor; there is no consistency in the relay combinations, too much shuffling of running legs, and no proper investment in junior athletes.”

The systemic issues became glaringly obvious during the lead-up to the World Relays. In August 2025, the AFI released a clear selection roadmap. The top six finishers from the 64th National Open Athletics Championships in Ranchi automatically qualified, alongside two wildcard selections based on seasonal merit.

The finalized eight-man squad comprised: Animesh Kujur, Gurindervir Singh, Manikanta Hoblidhar, Pranav Gurav, Harsh, Tamilarasu, Amlan Borgohain, and Ragul.

However, despite the roster being locked in by October 2025, the preparatory camp was inexplicably delayed by nearly five months, only assembling in late February 2026. This left the squad with barely a month of cohesive practice before competing globally.

Furthermore, the appointment of James Hillier, Athletics Director of Reliance Sports (one of the federation’s major sponsors), as the men’s relay coach has raised serious eyebrows regarding a conflict of interest.

“Problems arise when a private company coach is made the national relay coach,” the anonymous coach noted. “They often prioritize the company first, not the nation. This leads to internal conflicts, biased selections, and partiality. You can see the proof in the results.”

An anonymous national team sprinter echoed these concerns, stating that housing the camp at a private organization’s venue made several athletes feel “left out and cornered,” severely damaging team chemistry.

This lack of coordination spilled over into public view during major events. At the 2025 Asian Athletics Championships, a selection dispute erupted between Chief Coach Radhakrishnan Nair and Hillier regarding the heat’s lineup, specifically over whether to include Federation Cup champion Pranav Gurav.

Similar friction occurred at the Chandigarh Open Invitational. While the women’s team arrived early and repeatedly requested joint baton practice sessions, the men’s lineup was finalized so late that it derailed overall preparations.

“Right now, every athlete seems focused on outperforming each other individually,” the anonymous sprinter revealed. “In such an environment, how can they come together and run as one unit for the country? Why are the same athletes repeatedly being rotated between the men’s relay and mixed relay teams? Why not provide opportunities to younger athletes?”

The athlete urged the federation to transition to a long-term, accountable training camp system identical to India’s highly successful 4x400m program, overseen by an accountable Indian head coach.

Compounding the administrative chaos is a sudden medical crisis. With less than four months until the 2026 Asian Games, the squad is decimated by injuries:

Amlan Borgohain: Yet to open his season due to injury.

Manikanta Hoblidhar: Recovering from his hamstring injury

Ragul: Left the track in a wheelchair after a heavy fall during a baton exchange.

Tamilarasu: Sidelined during World Relays due to knee pain.

Out of the original eight-man squad, only four athletes remain fully fit.

India possesses the raw, individual speed to match Asia’s best. But facing elite, highly disciplined legacy squads from Japan, China, and Thailand, the biggest question now is whether the AFI can repair its broken internal systems before the clock runs out.

India’s men’s 4x100m relay team is set to return to international competition at the Saudi Athletics Grand Prix, scheduled for May 15-16, 2026, at Princess Nourah University in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The meet is part of the World Athletics Continental Tour Bronze circuit and is expected to attract a competitive field from across Asia and beyond.

The event will mark the Indian relay squad’s first appearance since the disappointing outing at the World Athletics Relays, where the team was disqualified under Technical Rule 24.7 after passing the baton outside the takeover zone. The error ended India’s campaign abruptly despite the team showing promising pace in the buildup to the competition.

The Riyadh meet now presents an important opportunity for the squad to regain rhythm and confidence ahead of a packed international season.

Among the athletes travelling to Saudi Arabia are Gurindervir Singh, Pranav Gurav and Harsh, all of whom will also line up in the men’s 100m individual event. The trio has been part of India’s emerging sprint setup and will be aiming to deliver strong performances against international opposition.

India’s fastest man, Animesh Kujur, is also set to compete and is entered in both the men’s 100m and 200m races.

The meet could prove significant for the Indian sprinters not only in terms of race exposure but also for valuable ranking points and relay preparation. With major continental and global events approaching later in the year, consistent international competition has become increasingly important for Indian athletics.

For the relay team especially, Riyadh offers a chance to move past the disappointment of the World Relays and focus on sharpening baton exchanges and race execution under competition conditions.

The lights were bright, the track in Gaborone was fast, and the expectations were sky-high. But as the dust settles on the 2026 World Relays, the story of India’s campaign isn’t one of triumph or narrow defeats. It is a story of a self-inflicted disaster—a dramatic collapse of coordination that left our athletes stranded and our fans heartbroken.

On paper, India arrived with the raw power to shake the world. On the track, they fell apart in a sequence of errors so basic they felt like a fever dream.

The Warning Signs

The nightmare began on Day 1. While the men’s 4x100m (39.07s) and the women’s 4x100m (43.97s) posted respectable times, the first crack in the armor appeared in the mixed 4x100m. A baton drop by Animesh Kujur on the third leg led to a DNF, a haunting omen of what was to come.

Day 2 offered a fleeting moment of brilliance—a National Record for the mixed relay team. But that single bright spot was quickly swallowed by a sea of technical failures.

The Anatomy of a Collapse

What followed wasn’t just losing; it was an organizational meltdown.

As 2010 CWG Gold medalist Abdul Najeeb Qureshi bluntly put it: “Gurindervir started far too early… and in Animesh’s case, it’s a basic rule: you cannot change hands during a 4x100m relay.”

The “Speed” Illusion

The tragedy here is that India was fast enough. We have the athletes; we just don’t have the “team.” While veteran Srabani Nanda tried to find the silver lining—praising Nithya Gandhe’s grit to finish the race—the reality remains: Relays are won in the exchange zone, and India was a ghost in that space.

Manjit Kaur, another 2010 legend, emphasized that relay success isn’t instinct; it’s grueling, repetitive drilling under pressure. That pressure clearly exposed a lack of “race-day” chemistry. Former national record holder Amiya Mallick hit the nail on the head: “The team needs to compete together in more races… we still see these mistakes during major events.”

The Verdict

The Botswana campaign can be summarized in a single, bitter sentence: The speed was world-class, but the coordination was amateur.

Baton drops. Zone violations. Disqualifications. These aren’t issues of fitness or heart; they are failures of execution and preparation. Until India moves away from “last-minute camps” and adopts a year-round, dedicated relay program—perhaps led by the very legends who once brought us Gold—we will continue to be the fastest team that never crosses the finish line.

In Botswana, India didn’t lose to the world. They lost to themselves.

What happened in Gaborone didn’t stay in Gaborone! It has shaped the global track and field landscape for the next two years.

The world’s top relay squads competed for automatic entry into the World Athletics Championships Beijing 27 and the inaugural World Athletics Ultimate Championship Budapest 26.

Led by Jamaica’s sensational 39.62s World Record in the Mixed 4x100m, the first wave of qualifiers has been confirmed:

Beijing 27 Qualification: The top 12 finishers in each of the six relay disciplines (Men’s and Women’s 4x100m, 4x400m, and the Mixed 4x100m and 4x400m) secured automatic berths for the 2027 World Championships. These teams progressed through a rigorous two-round qualification format, ensuring that only the most consistent and elite squads earned their spots early.

Budapest 26 Tickets: In a more exclusive race for the 2026 season, the top six finishers in the Mixed Relay finals earned automatic qualification for the first-ever World Athletics Ultimate Championship. This new, fast-paced ‘best of the best’ event in Budapest will feature only the highest-ranked athletes and teams in the world.

The following lists detail the nations that have successfully secured their places on the world stage.

Highlights:

Australia is one of the few nations to qualify a team in every single event for Beijing 27.

Nations like Jamaica, the United States, and Spain proved their versatility by qualifying for the Ultimate Championship in Budapest across both mixed-gender formats.

Host nation Botswana and neighbouring South Africa leveraged the home-continent advantage to secure spots in the Men’s 4x400m, a discipline where they continue to be world-class contenders.

Teams qualified for the World Athletics Championships Beijing 27 from World Relays 2026

1) Women’s 4x100m: Australia, Canada, China, France, Germany, Great Britain & NI, Italy, Jamaica, Nigeria, Poland, Portugal, Spain

2) Men’s 4x100m: Australia, Belgium, Botswana, Canada, China, Germany, Ghana, Great Britain & NI, Jamaica, Netherlands, South Africa, United States

3) Women’s 4x400m: Australia, Canada, Czechia, France, Germany, Great Britain & NI, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Spain

4) Men’s 4x400m: Australia, Belgium, Botswana, Brazil, Japan, Netherlands, Portugal, Qatar, Senegal, South Africa, Spain, Zimbabwe

5) Mixed 4x100m: Australia, Canada, Germany, Great Britain & NI, Italy, Jamaica, Netherlands, Nigeria, Portugal, Spain, Switzerland, United States

6) Mixed 4x400m: Australia, Belgium, Canada, Great Britain & NI, Italy, Jamaica, Kenya, Nigeria, Poland, South Africa, Spain, United States

Teams qualified for the World Athletics Ultimate Championship Budapest 26

1) Mixed 4x100m: Canada, Germany, Jamaica, Nigeria, Spain, United States

2) Mixed 4x400m: Great Britain & NI, Italy, Jamaica, Kenya, Spain, United States

India’s mixed 4x100m relay team created history by breaking the national record at the World Athletics Relays 2026 on Sunday.

The team of Ragul Kumar, Nithya Gandhe, Animesh Kujur, and Sneha SS ran 41.35s, beating the old record of 42.30s. The previous mark was set earlier this year in Chandigarh by Lalu Prasad, Unnathi Aiyappa, Harita Bhadra, and Dondapati Jayaram.

However, despite setting a new national record, India could not qualify for the final or secure a place for the 2027 World Championships in Beijing.

The team finished sixth in their heat and 10th overall, missing out on qualification, as only the top two teams from each heat advanced.

In the mixed 4x400m relay, the Indian team of Theerthesh P. Shetty, Kumari Saloni, Nihal William, and Rashdeep Kaur finished fifth in their heat with a time of 3:19.40, placing 12th overall.

It turned out to be a tough day for India in other events as well.

In the men’s 4x400m relay, the team could not finish the race after Amoj Jacob (second leg) suffered an injury during his leg.

The women’s 4x100m team, consisting of Nithya Gandhe, Tamanna, Sudeshna Shivankar, and Sneh, finished last overall in the heats with a time of 53.90s.

Meanwhile, the men’s 4x100m team of Harsh Raut, Animesh Kujur, Ragul Kumar, and Gurindervir Singh was disqualified due to a failed baton exchange.

India’s relay teams had a tough start on Day 1 of the World Athletics Relays 2026 in Gaborone, Botswana, as none of the five teams could reach the finals on Saturday.

However, all teams will get another chance on Sunday. They will compete again for a few remaining spots to qualify for the 2027 World Athletics Championships.

The men’s 4x400m team Dharmveer Choudhary, Rajesh Ramesh, Vishal TK, and Manu TS gave a strong performance. They finished fourth in their heat with a time of 3:00.32 (Season Best).

Rajesh Ramesh, who ran the second leg, even took the lead for a short time. Vishal TK, running the third leg, stayed close with the top teams. But in the end
Manu TS couldn’t maintain the pace, India finished behind Belgium, Qatar, and Spain, placing 12th overall and missing out on the final.

In this event, only the top teams from each heat and the next fastest teams move to the final and directly qualify for the 2027 World Championships.

The other teams, including India, will race again on Day 2. This time, only the top two teams from each heat will qualify.

Earlier, the mixed 4x100m relay team S. Tamilarasu, Nithya Gandhe, Animesh Kujur, and SS Sneha could not finish their race. The baton slipped from Kujur’s hand during the exchange.

The mixed 4x400m team Theerthesh Shetty, Ansa Babu, Amoj Jacob, and Rashdeep Kaur finished sixth in their heat with a time of 3:16.00.

In the women’s 4x100m relay, Tamanna, Nithya Gandhe, Sudeshna Shivankar, and SS Sneha finished fifth with a time of 43.97 seconds.

The men’s 4x100m team Harsh Raut, Ragul Kumar, Animesh Kujur, and Gurindervir Singh, finished last in their heat, clocking 39.07 seconds.