Asian Games 2026: Roshibina completes hat-trick with a silver

Less than a fortnight ago, Naorem Roshibina Devi was preparing to watch the Asian Games on television. Having lost in the wushu trials for the quadrennial event, the two-time medallist had come to terms with missing out on a third foray.

On Thursday, the 25-year-old completed her hat-trick of medals, finishing with a silver after losing 0-2 to China’s Zhang Xiaoyu in the women’s sanda 60kg final. The medal not only vindicated her last-minute inclusion in the squad but also proved she had it in her to perform despite the controversies.

“It is not my position, whatever happened was not because of me. It was the decision of the federation, whatever decision they took I think was good. I will ignore it and focus on my goal,” Roshibina said after the final bout, refusing to get into details of her last-minute replacement.

Divyanshi Choudhary, who had defeated her in the trials earlier before being withdrawn due to an ACL injury, had accused the federation of harassment and favouritism. She had even threatened to end her life in a social media post before being spoken to by the Sports Ministry and the federation.

Roshibina, while admitting it was not the ideal start to the games, preferred looking at the positives.

“There was disturbance, I did not get much time to prepare. If I had more time, I would have performed much better. But everyone supported me a lot to reach here. I did not get what everyone wanted but I will try to do better in future, try to recover and come back,” the Manipur athlete said.

Roshibina, who won bronze in 2018 and a silver in 2023, was unable to find a way to break past the much stronger Chinese, who was on the offensive from the start.

“The coach had told me she is physically strong. We tried our best to defend. The Chinese team puts a lot of pressure. I have won silver medal before, I tried a lot for the gold but could not. We have to focus on our mentality. There are a lot of good players in India, I am sure they will do better,” she insisted.

Appearing in the final with a taped knee, Roshibina also got hit on the face during the bout. “It is just a minor injury. When I am in competition, I forget everything. I am in a different state of mind, I don’t know what pain is.”

The medal, she claimed, was more important than just a personal achievement. “This medal is very important for me. There are many players who have inspired us, I want to be like them and inspire everyone who is coming up,” she added.