India has finished the Asian Games hockey competition with something the country had never achieved before — gold medals for both its women’s and men’s teams in the same edition.
The women won the title on October 2 after beating defending champions China 1–0 in a tense final. A day later, the men produced a 5–1 victory over Malaysia to retain their Asian Games crown.
The two victories have also put both Indian teams directly into the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics. The women reached the final after an unbeaten campaign and then held off China with a disciplined defensive performance. The men, after a dramatic 4–3 semifinal win over Pakistan, recovered from Malaysia’s early fightback to finish the final with four unanswered goals.
For Indian women’s hockey, the gold has a special place in the record books.
The last time India won the Asian Games women’s hockey title was in 1982. The team later finished with silver medals in 1998 and 2018, along with several bronze-medal finishes, but another gold remained out of reach for more than four decades.
That wait ended in Kakamigahara.
India went through the pool stage unbeaten before beating South Korea 2–0 in the semifinal. The final against China was expected to be a much tougher examination because China were the defending Asian Games champions and had also won silver at the Paris 2024 Olympics.
The difference came in the 10th minute.
Captain Salima Tete was involved in the build-up before the ball reached Lalremsiami. The forward found the target with a reverse-stick shot, giving India a 1–0 lead.
The goal came on a memorable personal occasion for Lalremsiami, who was making her 200th senior international appearance.
India then had to spend a long time protecting that advantage.
China continued to put pressure on the Indian defence and created opportunities inside the circle. Goalkeeper Savita Punia became one of the key figures of the final when China earned a penalty stroke. Savita made the save, keeping India ahead.
China continued searching for an equaliser, but India’s defence held its shape. India also successfully used a video referral to overturn another penalty-stroke decision later in the match.
The final whistle eventually came with India still 1–0 ahead.
A single goal had been enough to bring the women’s Asian Games title back to India after 44 years.
The result was also important beyond the medal ceremony. By winning the Asian Games title, India secured direct qualification for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics. The Asian Games gold therefore removed one major qualification hurdle well before the Olympic tournament begins.
The women had already shown progress at the 2026 FIH Hockey World Cup, where they finished fifth, their best World Cup finish in 52 years. The men finished eighth at the same World Cup. Hockey India had identified the Asian Games as an important opportunity for both teams to respond after those World Cup campaigns.
The women delivered that response with an Asian Games title.
The men’s team then had to deal with a different kind of pressure.
They arrived in Japan as the defending champions after winning gold at the Hangzhou Asian Games in 2023. The objective was clear: retain the title and secure another direct Olympic qualification place.
The route to the final was far from straightforward.
India faced Pakistan in the semifinal and built a 3–0 lead. Pakistan then fought back to level the match 3–3, turning the semifinal into a contest that could have gone either way.
India eventually found the winner with less than a minute remaining. Abhishek scored with 49.2 seconds left on the clock to send India into the final with a 4–3 victory.
Malaysia presented another challenge in the gold-medal match.
India started strongly and Harmanpreet Singh opened the scoring in the 11th minute through a penalty corner. Malaysia responded almost immediately, with Shello Silverius scoring in the 14th minute to make it 1–1.
India did not allow the equaliser to change the direction of the match for long.
Jugraj Singh restored India’s lead in the 23rd minute, again from a penalty corner. India went into half-time with a 2–1 advantage.
The third quarter gave India more breathing room.
In the 42nd minute, India earned a penalty stroke and Hardik Singh converted it to make the score 3–1. Malaysia now needed two goals to bring the final back level, but India’s control over the match was growing.
Shilanand Lakra added the fourth goal in the 54th minute.
Three minutes later, Harmanpreet returned to the scoresheet. He converted another penalty corner to complete his brace and take India to 5–1.
The final whistle confirmed India’s fifth men’s Asian Games hockey gold medal and, more importantly, the country’s first successful defence of the men’s Asian Games hockey title.
The men’s victory also secured direct qualification for Los Angeles 2028.
The two teams therefore enter the next Olympic cycle from very different starting points. The women have just ended a 44-year Asian Games wait and are rebuilding their confidence after their best World Cup finish in more than five decades. The men have defended their Asian Games title but will also be looking to improve on their eighth-place finish at the World Cup.
There is plenty of work ahead before Los Angeles.
Asian Games success guarantees Olympic qualification, but the Olympic tournament will bring together the leading teams from across the world. India will need to maintain the defensive discipline shown by the women against China and the attacking depth displayed by the men against Malaysia.
For the women’s side, the next phase will be about turning the confidence of this gold medal into consistent performances against the world’s strongest teams. Lalremsiami, Salima Tete and Savita Punia have provided experience at important moments, while the younger players now have a major tournament victory to build on.
The men’s team will have a similar challenge. Harmanpreet Singh remains a major attacking weapon, while the final showed that India can find goals through several players. Jugraj Singh, Hardik Singh and Shilanand Lakra all scored against Malaysia, giving the team a wider attacking contribution.
The World Cup results earlier this year also provide a useful reminder that Asian Games success and Olympic success are separate challenges.
India’s women finished fifth at the World Cup, their best result there in 52 years, while the men finished eighth. Those results show where the teams stood internationally before arriving in Japan. The Asian Games have now given both sides a significant boost heading into the next phase.
There is another reason these victories matter for Indian hockey.
The men’s team has been steadily rebuilding its Olympic reputation, winning bronze at both Tokyo 2020 and Paris 2024. The women’s team has been working to establish itself more consistently among the leading international sides.
Winning both Asian Games titles in the same edition gives Indian hockey a rare opportunity to prepare two teams for the same Olympic destination with continental gold medals behind them.
For the women, October 2 ended a 44-year wait. For the men, October 3 confirmed a successful title defence.
Now both teams have Los Angeles 2028 ahead of them, with qualification already secured and a major Asian Games victory to build upon. Next two years will decide how far this double gold can take Indian hockey.
