How Sonipat Turned Farmland, Akharas And Sacrifice Into 13 Asian Games Gold Medals

Sonipat emerged as a major contributor to India’s gold medal tally at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games in Japan, with athletes from the district winning 13 gold medals across hockey, archery, kabaddi, athletics and wrestling. Their success reflects family sacrifices, village sporting traditions, affordable coaching and institutions such as the Sports Authority of India centre and Sports University of Haryana. Former India hockey captain Pritam Rani Siwach’s academy supports around 200 players, including 150 girls. Neha Goyal, a midfielder in India’s gold-winning women’s hockey team, said a Rs 2,000 player-of-the-match prize made hockey her responsibility. Abhishek Nain, an Indian men’s hockey player, scored India’s winning goal against Pakistan in the semifinal.