Raipur, April 3 Karnataka emerged as the overall champions with 23 gold medals in the inaugural Khelo India Tribal Games. A highlight of the final day proceedings here was Jharkhand's Komalika Bari winning the gold medal in the women's recurve archery category, a former world junior champion.
Odisha's Arjun Khara won the men's recurve category, but these efforts were not enough for the chasing teams to dislodge Karnataka from the top of the standings.
Thirty states and union territories participated in the inaugural edition of the Games, which featured nearly 3800 participants across nine disciplines.
A total of 106 gold medals were awarded across archery, athletics, football, hockey, swimming, weightlifting, and wrestling, while traditional sports like mallakhamb and kabaddi were featured as demonstration sports.
In addition to the 23 gold medals, Karnataka also secured eight silver and seven bronze medals, claiming the overall championship. Odisha finished second with 21 gold, 15 silver, and 21 bronze medals.
Odisha was the only team to reach a half-century of medals, finishing with 57 medals. Jharkhand came in third with 16 gold, eight silver, and 11 bronze medals.
The host state, Chhattisgarh, also put up a strong performance, winning three gold, 10 silver, and six bronze medals to finish ninth.
Overall champion Karnataka dominated the swimming events, winning 15 gold, five silver, and three bronze medals, setting the pace from the opening day. They also secured five gold in athletics and three in wrestling, ensuring that neither Odisha nor Jharkhand could catch up.
Karnataka's Manikanta L was the most successful athlete of the Games, winning eight gold and one silver, while his teammate Dhoneesh N won five gold and a silver in the swimming competition.
Among the women competitors, Odisha's Anjali Munda won five gold medals, while Meghanjali of Karnataka secured four gold and two bronze medals.
Odisha was the only team to win at least one gold medal in all six sports disciplines, including eight in athletics and seven in swimming.
A total of 25 states and union territories were represented in the medal tally, with 20 of them winning at least one gold medal. Maharashtra finished fourth with six gold, 10 silver, and four bronze medals, while Arunachal Pradesh completed the top five with six gold, one silver, and four bronze medals.