Asian Para Games: Why was Rakshitha Raju disqualified despite faster time as Ravanni Valasanaini won bronze?

India’s Rakshita Raju was disqualified from her bronze medal (Image: IANS) India’s Rakshita Raju was disqualified after initially finishing third in the women’s 1500m T11 race at the 2026 Asian Para Games in Aichi-Nagoya on Monday, with compatriot Ravanni Valasanani promoted to a bronze medal following the decision.Rakshita, running alongside guide Tabres Khan, clocked 5:31.45 to finish third. However, she was subsequently disqualified under Technical Rule 6.9 (TR6.9), which changed the final order and opened the door for Ravanni to win the bronze medal.Competing with guide Rahul Balakrishna, Ravanni finished fourth in 5:41.85 before Rakshita was disqualified.

Why was Rakshita Raju disqualified?

The disqualification was attributed to TR6.9, but the exact violation was not determined from the available information. Said explanation linking the decision to clothing, footwear or bib regulations requires verification with official results or a jury decision before publication.

China secured gold and silver

China dominated the event, with He Shanshan winning gold in 4:41.19 and compatriot Huang Zengli taking silver in 4:55.54. India’s Ravanni was promoted to third after a change in order.The result came amid a productive day for India at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Para Games. Earlier, Soumya Kumar and Radha Venkatesh secured gold and silver respectively in the women’s T12/T13 1500m event.India also registered a 1-2 finish in men’s F46 javelin, with Rinku Hooda winning gold with a season’s best throw of 65.11m and Ajeet Singh Yadav taking silver with 65.02m. Nishad Kumar added another gold medal in men’s T47 long jump with a best of 7.11m.