Veteran thrower Manpreet Kaur returns to podium with Asian Games shot put bronze

Manpreet Kaur, a seasoned figure in Indian athletics, made a strong comeback at the Asian Games 2026 by securing the bronze medal in the women's shot put. Throwing the implement to a distance of 17.17 metres in the final round, she placed third behind China's Song Jiayuan and Zhang Linru.

Her fellow Indian athlete Krishna Jayashankar Menon also performed admirably, achieving a fifth‑place finish with a throw of 16.57 metres. The bronze adds to Kaur's resume, which includes a bronze at the 2023 Asian Athletics Championships and a near‑medal performance at the 2026 Commonwealth Games where she threw 17.49 metres.

Kaur's journey has seen highs and lows. After winning gold at the 2017 Asian Athletics Championships, she faced a four‑year ban due to a positive test for a prohibited substance, resulting in the forfeiture of her gold medal. She bounced back in 2022, setting a new national record of 18.06 metres. Earlier this season, she recorded a 17.75‑metre throw at the National Inter‑State Athletics Championship, surpassing the Asian Games qualifying benchmark of 16.25 metres.

She is now the third Indian woman to earn an Asian Games shot put medal, following Barbara Webster's bronze in 1951 and Kiran Baliyan's bronze in 2022. Manpreet Kaur's steady performances at major championships reaffirm her status as a cornerstone of India's field‑event squad.