Aichi-Nagoya, 24 September 2026 — Indian rowers Naib Subedar Salman Khan of the Indian Army and Satnam Singh of the Indian Navy won bronze in the men’s double sculls at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games on Thursday, securing India’s first medal in the event.
The pair finished third in 6 minutes 13.25 seconds at the Nagaragawa International Regatta Course. China’s Yi Xudi and Yide Nie took gold, while Uzbekistan’s Pavel Sorin and Mekhrojbek Mamatkulov claimed silver in 6:10.49.
India remained in medal contention throughout the 2,000-metre final, holding second place at the 500-metre, 1,000-metre and 1,500-metre marks. Uzbekistan overtook the Indian crew in the closing 500 metres. The Indians still held third and completed the race for bronze.
The result is India’s first Asian Games medal in the men’s double sculls. For Satnam Singh, it is a second continental medal after bronze in the men’s quadruple sculls at the Hangzhou Asian Games in 2023. For Salman Khan, it is a first Asian Games podium finish.
The pairing was assembled after a late crew reshuffle. Both athletes had initially been assigned to the men’s quadruple sculls before being moved into the double sculls shortly before competition. They qualified for the final after finishing second in their heat on Wednesday.
From cab driver to Army rower
Salman Khan, from Pure Dhingai in Amethi district, Uttar Pradesh, is the eldest of six siblings. After his father, Mohd Kasim Khan, died of dengue when Salman was 18, he deferred his plan to join the armed forces and drove an Uber in Delhi to support the family.
He later prepared for recruitment, joined the Bombay Engineer Group in Pune on 25 September 2018, and was introduced to rowing by Army coaches who noted his height and physique. He was inducted into the Target Olympic Podium Scheme, won gold at the 2024 Asian Rowing Cup, and was promoted to Naib Subedar. In 2025 he added silver medals at the Australian Rowing Championships and the Asian Rowing Championships.
Navy rower with a second Asian Games medal
Satnam Singh, born on 5 July 2000 in Fatta Maluka, Mansa district, Punjab, was a national-level handball player before switching to rowing in 2018 after being encouraged by Olympian Sawarn Singh Virk. He joined the Indian Navy in 2019 and became the first Navy rower to win the men’s single sculls title at the Senior National Rowing Championships.
He represented India at the 2018 Youth Olympic Games and later won gold in the men’s quadruple sculls at the 2025 Asian Rowing Championships in Vietnam. Standing 190 cm, he is coached in the Navy system and has established himself among India’s leading scullers.
Near miss in the single sculls
Earlier on Thursday, Balraj Panwar finished fourth in the men’s single sculls final in 6:54.80 after holding second place through 1,500 metres. China’s Deng Zhiwei won gold. India’s last Asian Games medal in that event was Sawarn Singh’s bronze at Incheon in 2014.
The bronze by Khan and Singh added another medal to India’s rowing account at these Games and marked a significant step for a sport in which the country has historically collected medals mainly in larger boat classes. The two servicemen’s result also underlined the continuing contribution of the Army and Navy sports systems to India’s continental campaign.
