17.17m and onto the podium: Manpreet Kaur makes history; wins women’s shot put bronze at Asian Games | Asian Games 2026 News
Indian shot putter Manpreet Kaur made history on Friday by winning the bronze medal in the women’s shot put final at the 2026 Asian Games in Nagoya.The 36-year-old became only the third Indian woman to win an Asian Games medal in women’s shot put.Manpreet secured bronze with a best throw of 17.17m, winning her first Asian Games medal. She opened with a throw of 16.32m and improved with each round before producing her medal-winning effort in the fourth round.She fouled her sixth and final attempt, but it did not affect the result as she remained third in the field.The 36-year-old Manpreet hails from Patiala and her last major international performance was a bronze at the 2023 Asian Championships. Her personal best is 18.06m that came in 2022.The bronze marks a return to the podium for Manpreet after more than a decade at the senior level. She returned to competition in 2021 after serving a four-year doping ban.At the previous Asian Games in Hangzhou, Manpreet finished fifth. Earlier this year, she narrowly missed a medal at the 2026 Commonwealth Games after finishing fourth with a throw of 17.49m.India’s other finalist, Krishna Jayasankar, finished fifth with a best throw of 16.57m.China’s Jiayuan Song won the gold medal with a throw of 19.40m, while China’s Linru Zhang took silver with 18.14m. Manpreet’s 17.17m was enough to secure bronze for India.
