A weightlifter who’s already won two Commonwealth golds just won a third and did it with a Games record. At the pared-down 2026 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, India’s medal charge is once again being led from the same place it always is: the weightlifting platform.
What is happening?
The 2026 Commonwealth Games are underway in Glasgow, Scotland, running from July 23 to August 2, and India’s campaign has built real momentum through the first four days. According to Olympics.com, India has won five medals so far: one gold, three silver, and one bronze, with 122 Indian athletes competing across eight able-bodied sports and five integrated para disciplines.
The headline moment belongs to Olympic silver medalist Mirabai Chanu. According to StudyIQ’s tracking coverage, Chanu won her third consecutive Commonwealth Games gold medal, lifting a Games-record total of 190kg in the women’s 48kg category, a genuine hat-trick of titles at this event. She wasn’t alone on the podium that day either. Outlook India reported that Rishikanta Singh Chanambam matched the Commonwealth Games record on his way to a silver medal in the men’s 60kg category, while Raja Muthupandi added a second silver in the men’s 65kg, meaning weightlifting alone delivered three of India’s five medals through the same single day of competition.
India’s account was actually opened earlier, in a different sport entirely. According to Olympics.com, Jhandu Kumar registered India’s first medal of the Games with a bronze in para powerlifting, a result ESPN’s coverage described as especially meaningful, noting Jhandu rose “out of shadows, poverty to win Commonwealth bronze.”
Why did this happen?
Weightlifting’s dominance in India’s medal count isn’t a coincidence; it reflects a pattern that has held for years. According to StudyIQ, weightlifting has consistently contributed a significant share of India’s Commonwealth Games medals over time, and Glasgow 2026 has been no exception, with the discipline once again emerging as India’s strongest medal-producing sport at these Games.
This particular edition of the Commonwealth Games is notably smaller than recent ones, which changes the medal math for every competing nation. According to ESPN’s tracker, India sent a smaller squad of 123 athletes across 13 sports disciplines to Glasgow, compared to the 61 medals India won at the larger 2022 Birmingham Games. Critically, 30 of those 61 Birmingham medals came in sports that don’t even feature on the Glasgow 2026 program, meaning expectations for a smaller overall medal count in Glasgow were realistic and built in well before competition began.
There’s also a structural quirk unique to this edition. The Indian Olympic Association’s own tracker noted that one of the defining features of the Glasgow Commonwealth Games is the absence of a traditional Athletes’ Village, a departure from the standard Games format that has reportedly shaped how competing nations, including India, have approached logistics and team accommodation for this edition.
Who is affected and how?
For India specifically, the campaign carries real historical weight. According to ESPN, India have won 564 medals at the Commonwealth Games across 18 appearances overall, the fourth-most of any nation in Commonwealth Games history, with 101 of those medals coming from the 2010 Games that India itself hosted in New Delhi, still the country’s most successful campaign ever.
The individual stories add texture beyond the medal count. Lovlina Borgohain, the boxer, has already been guaranteed at least a bronze medal after receiving a quarter-final bye in the women’s 75kg category with ESPN noting that both losing semifinalists in Commonwealth Games boxing are awarded bronze regardless of outcome, meaning Lovlina’s medal was effectively locked in before she even steps into the ring for her actual first bout, though she’ll be aiming to convert it into gold.
There’s a broader Indian sporting narrative running underneath this too. According to Olympics.com, two-time Olympic and world javelin champion Neeraj Chopra leads a 32-member Indian athletics squad in Scotland, and is specifically aiming to reclaim a Commonwealth title he was forced to skip in 2022 due to injury, adding a redemption angle for one of India’s most recognizable athletes at these Games. Other athletes to watch in the coming days, per the same report, include Animesh Kujur, Murali Sreeshankar, Tajinderpal Singh Toor, Parul Chaudhary, and Gulveer Singh across various track and field events.
As of Day 4, Outlook India reported India had climbed to eighth place in the overall medal standings, a solid early position with over a week of competition remaining before the Games conclude on August 2.
What happens next?
The athletics program is still to come. With Neeraj Chopra and a 32-strong track and field squad yet to fully compete, India’s medal tally is widely expected to grow significantly once the athletics events get fully underway.
Boxing could deliver more guaranteed medals. With Lovlina Borgohain already locked into at least bronze and other Indian boxers reportedly advancing well through their brackets, the boxing competition could add several more medals to India’s tally in the coming days.
The final week will determine India’s overall Games ranking. With India sitting eighth after four days out of a roughly ten-day competition window, the coming days across swimming, para-sport events, and track cycling will decide whether India climbs further or holds its current position through the closing ceremony on August 2.
Key takeaway
- India has won five medals through four days of the 2026 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow: one gold, three silver, one bronze, with weightlifter Mirabai Chanu winning a historic third consecutive Commonwealth gold with a Games-record 190kg lift.
- India sent a smaller squad of 123 athletes across 13 sports to this pared-down edition of the Games, meaning a smaller overall medal count than 2022’s Birmingham Games (61 medals) was expected from the outset.t
- With Neeraj Chopra’s athletics events and Lovlina Borgohain’s already-guaranteed boxing medal still to come, India’s tally, currently eighth overall, is expected to grow substantially through the Games’ final week