Asian Games: Tajinder missed out on a historic hat-trick and finished with silverware
Tajinderpal Singh Toor’s quest for a hat-trick of Asian Games gold medals came to an end on Saturday, but the Indian bowler still left the continental showpiece with a medal.
Toor finished with silver in the men’s throw final after a best throw of 20.64m. Iran’s Mohammadreza Tayebise won gold with a Games record 20.81m, while Saudi Arabia’s Mohammed Tolu won bronze with 20.48m.
Asian Games Live: Update 26 September
Tayebise’s winning effort broke Toor’s Asian Games record of 20.75m, which he set when he won gold at the 2018 Jakarta Games.
The contest began with Toor facing an early challenge. After Tayebise took the lead with 20.81m, Toor’s effort of 20.26m briefly left him in third place. He needed an answer and he gave it when it mattered.
In his fifth attempt, Toor sent a shot of 20.64m, which was his best performance of the competition and his best mark of the season. The throw carried him over Tolua for the silver medal. He couldn’t find the distance needed to catch Tayebise and finished 17cm behind the Iranian.
It brought an end to Toor’s run of two consecutive Asian Games gold medals, but extended his podium streak at the Games to three editions.
Toor won gold in Jakarta in 2018 with a throw of 20.75m defended his title at the Hangzhou Gamesheld in 2023, with an effort of 20.36m.
He arrived in Aichi-Nagoya with a chance to become the first Indian athlete to win three consecutive individual gold medals from the Asian Games. That opportunity vanished with Tayebise’s record-breaking throw, but Toor still became a three-time Asian Games medalist.
TOOR’S LONG RUN AT THE TOP
Toor’s journey to becoming one of India’s premier bowlers began in the village of Khosa Pando in Moga district of Punjab. He grew up in a farming family and initially played cricket before taking up shot put with his father’s encouragement.
The transition changed his career. Toor won Asian Championships gold in 2019 and 2023 and Asian Indoor Championships gold in 2024. He won silver at the 2026 Asian Indoor Championships.
His biggest throw came in 2023 when he produced 21.77m and set an Indian national record. The mark also stood as an Asian record at the time.
A two-time Olympian, Toor has represented India at the Tokyo 2020 and Paris 2024 Olympics. He is also a Target Olympic Podium Scheme athlete as of November 2018, with government assistance supporting his participation in international competitions and overseas training camps.
His Asian Games record now stands at two gold medals and one silver. For the first time since 2018, Toor did not finish on the top podium at the Games. But he didn’t leave empty-handed either.
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