Asian Para Games: Kokila wins silver in judo after stunning reigning world champion in semi-finals

Kokila secures silverware (Agency Images) India’s Kokila upgraded her bronze medal from the previous Asian Para Games to silver at the 2026 edition in Aichi-Nagoya when she overcame reigning world champion Yi Liu in the semi-finals before losing to Kyrgyzstan’s Aibike Ulanbek Kyzy in the women’s J2 52kg final on Monday.However, the Indian judoka’s title hopes ended abruptly when Ulanbek Kyzy secured an ippon in just 21 seconds at the Aichi Prefectural Martial Arts Hall to claim gold.

Kokila stuns the reigning world champion and reaches the final

Kokila produced one of the standout performances of her campaign in the semi-finals, defeating China’s Liu to book her place in the gold medal contention. The Indian registered a waza-ari and a yuko in a close encounter, while Liu also scored a waza-ari. Kokila received a shido penalty for a minor infraction but held on to secure a memorable victory.However, she failed to carry that momentum into the final, where Ulanbek Kyzy played a decisive finish almost immediately to deny the Indian the continental title.

The Indian judoka improved on bronze from Hangzhou

Despite the disappointment of missing out on the gold, Kokilai’s silver medal marks a step up from her bronze in the women’s 48kg category at the previous Asian Para Games in Hangzhou. This time she advanced to the finals in the 52 kg division and improved her medal position at the continental event.The visually impaired judoka from Haryana’s Jind district of Kokila has also represented India at the Paris 2024 Paralympics. He competes in the J2 classification, which caters to judokas with varying degrees of visual impairment.Her victory over Liu, the reigning world champion, underlined her ability to take on the top names in international para-judo. Although the finals proved to be a short and difficult outing, Kokila leaves Aichi-Nagoya with silver and another major milestone in her international career.