Who is India's most decorated athlete in Asian Games history?
The athlete has won five gold medals at the Asian Games.
India have sent one of their largest contingents ever to the Asian Games 2026, with 503 athletes competing across 37 sports in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan, from September 19 to October 4, 2026.
The squad includes 269 men and 234 women, backed by 246 support staff and 19 officials, marking India’s twentieth appearance at the quadrennial event since it first took part in 1951.
Sahdev Yadav is leading the Indian contingent as Chef de Mission, with table tennis legend Sharath Kamal serving as his deputy. Athletics leads the pack with 79 competitors, followed by field hockey with 40 and cricket with 30, as India chase medals across archery, boxing, wrestling, shooting, badminton and dozens of other disciplines.
But as the Games get underway, a question keeps coming up among fans and sports enthusiasts alike: Who actually holds the record for being India’s most decorated athlete in Asian Games history?
Leander Paes holds the record
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The answer is Leander Paes, the former Indian tennis star who retired from professional tennis in 2020. Paes has won five gold medals and three bronze medals across his Asian Games career, making him the most decorated male tennis player in the Games’ history.
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What sets him apart is not merely the number of medals he won, but the range of events in which he secured them. Paes won medals in singles, doubles, mixed doubles and the team event—a rare achievement matched by very few Indian athletes across sports.
His gold medals came in 1994 Hiroshima (men’s doubles and men’s team), 2002 Busan (men’s doubles), and 2006 Doha (men’s doubles and mixed doubles), while his bronze medals came in 1990 Beijing (men’s team), 1994 Hiroshima (men’s singles) and 2002 Busan (mixed doubles). This combination makes him the highest Indian gold-medal-winning athlete across all sports in Asian Games history.
Paes’s career outside the Asian Games is equally staggering. He won 18 Grand Slam titles, eight in men’s doubles and 10 in mixed doubles, and remains one of only three men in the Open Era to complete a career Grand Slam in both categories. He also holds the record for the most doubles victories in Davis Cup history — 45 wins.
How he compares to PT Usha?
When people talk about India’s greatest Asian Games athletes, PT Usha’s name comes up almost immediately, and rightly so.
The sprinter, now president of the Indian Olympic Association (IOA), won four gold medals and seven silver medals across her career, with her golden run coming largely at the 1986 Seoul Asian Games, where she claimed four golds in a single edition.
Related: A look at India’s medal winners at Asian Games 2022
While Usha’s silver medal tally is higher than Paes’s overall medal count in some readings, Paes edges ahead in gold medals, five to her four.
Who is India’s most decorated Asian Games athlete?
Leander Paes, with five gold and three bronze medals across singles, doubles, mixed doubles and team events, the highest gold tally by any Indian across all sports.
Does Leander Paes have more total medals than PT Usha?
No. Usha leads on total medals with 11 (four gold, seven silver) versus Paes’s eight (five gold, three bronze). Paes’s edge is specifically in gold medals.
How big is India’s contingent at the Asian Games 2026?
503 athletes across 37 sports are competing in Aichi and Nagoya, Japan, from September 19 to October 4, 2026 — India’s 20th Games appearance.
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