Raipur, March 27 – Karnataka extended their lead in the medal tally at the international swimming competition, while Chhattisgarh had its best day so far at the inaugural Khelo India Tribal Games (KITG) 2026, winning one silver and two bronze medals in Raipur on Friday.
Manikanta L. once again led the charge, adding two gold and one silver to his individual tally. Karnataka finished Day 3 with 13 gold, 5 silver, and one bronze. Odisha is second with six gold, two silver, and nine bronze medals, while Assam is third with two gold, four silver, and two bronze medals. Chhattisgarh is joint seventh with Tripura, each with six medals – three silvers and as many bronzes.
Anushka Bhagat won her third silver medal in the women’s 50m breaststroke, Nikhil Xalco won his second bronze medal in the men’s 50m breaststroke, and Nyasa Paikra won a bronze in the 100m butterfly.
In total, 30 states and Union Territories are participating in the inaugural Khelo India Tribal Games (KITG), which involves nearly 3800 participants competing in nine sports disciplines. There are 106 gold medals up for grabs across archery, athletics, football, hockey, swimming, weightlifting, and wrestling, while traditional sports like Mallakhamb and Kabaddi are demonstration sports.
After three days of competition, 14 states have won at least one medal, with six of them winning at least one gold. Arunachal Pradesh and Maharashtra also opened their gold medal accounts on Friday, with Anai Wangsu winning the women’s 58kg weightlifting gold for Arunachal Pradesh, and Tanvi Dhurve winning the women’s 100m butterfly gold.
Tanvi became the first swimmer from Karnataka or Odisha to win the top spot, finishing in 1:23.65s, almost nine seconds ahead of Shristi Verma of Madhya Pradesh. Nyasa Paikra of Chhattisgarh finished third with a time of 1:47.62s.
“I have been swimming for the past eight years, inspired by my family. My father, Sukhdev, was an international open water swimmer, and my brother, Sarthak, is a gold medallist in water polo nationals, and I am very happy that I have also won a Khelo India medal,” said Nagpur-based Tanvi, who recently completed her 10th standard exam.
Meghanjali of Karnataka then clinched her third gold medal in the women’s 50m breaststroke with a time of 38.23s, while Anushka Bhagat finished second with a time of 39.57s. This was the third time that Anushka was unable to secure the top spot, but she was satisfied with her performance in the Khelo India Tribal Games.
In the men’s event, Manikanta continued to perform well, winning gold in the 50m breaststroke and 100m butterfly before the demands of the competition took their toll.
In the final race of the day, Dhoonesh N, Manikanta’s teammate, edged him out in the 50m freestyle, stopping the clock at 25.75s, while Manikanta finished in 26.38s.
In the weightlifting competition, Anai Wangsu of Arunachal Pradesh lifted a total of 169 kg to win the women’s 58kg category, while Bidu Smita Bhoi of Odisha won the women’s 63kg category with a total lift of 195 kg.
Richin Chongruju then doubled Arunachal Pradesh’s gold medal tally by winning the men’s 79kg competition with a total lift of 269 kg, while Mizoram took the silver and bronze through Lalfakawma (Mizoram) with 265kg and Jacob Vanlatluanga (Mizoram) with 250kg.
FOOTBALL
Women:
Group A: Jharkhand bt Assam 9-1
Group B: Gujarat bt Andhra Pradesh 25-0
SWIMMING
Women:
100m Butterfly: Gold – Tanvi Dhurve (Maharashtra) 1:23.65s; Silver – Shristi Verma (Madhya Pradesh) 1:32.94s; Bronze – Nyasa Paikra (Chhattisgarh) 1:47.62s
50m Breaststroke: Gold – Meghanjali (Karnataka) 38.23s; Silver – Anushka Bhagat (Chhattisgarh) 39.57s; Bronze – Priya Oraon (Jharkhand) 40.83s
50m Freestyle: Gold – Meghanjali (Karnataka) 31.64s; Silver – Tiluttam Jamatia (Tripura) 31.76s; Bronze – Verem Nongsiej (Meghalaya) 31.85s
Men:
100m Butterfly: Gold – Manikanta L (Karnataka) 59.94s; Silver – Firmino Emon Lalung (Assam) 1:00.46s; Bronze – Riyaj Tripura (Tripura) 1:04.02s
50m Breaststroke: Gold – Manikanta L (Karnataka) 31.08s; Silver – Palash Thakur (Maharashtra) 32.13s; Bronze – Nikhil Xalco (Chhattisgarh) 32.93s
50m Freestyle: Gold – Dhoonesh N (Karnataka) 25.75s: Silver – Manikanta L (Karnataka) 26.38s; Bronze – Firmino Emon Lalung (Assam) 26.58s
WEIGHTLIFTING
Women:
58kg: Gold – Anai Wangsu (Arunachal Pradesh) 169kg; Silver – Mina Santa (Odisha) 165kg; Bronze – Mina Singh (Odisha) 161kg
63kg: Gold – Bidu Smita Bhoi (Odisha) 195kg; Silver – Boni Mangkhya (Arunachal Pradesh) 193kg; Bronze – Dunkham Seng Turung (Assam) 161kg
Men:
71kg: Gold – Mh Silvan Beihrothatlo (Mizoram) 281kg; Silver – Manjunath Marati (Karnataka) 270kg; Bronze – Tayar Ronik (Arunachal Pradesh) 255kg
79kg: Gold – Richin Chongruju (Arunachal Pradesh); Silver -- Lalfakawma (Mizoram) 265kg; Bronze – Jacob Vanlatluanga (Mizoram) 250kg.
