Shourya Ambure wins historic bronze, India’s first athletics medal at the Dakar Youth Olympics

NEW DELHI: India’s Shourya Ambure produced an unforgettable performance at the Dakar 2026 Youth Olympics as she won a historic bronze medal in the women’s 100m hurdles to claim the first athletics medal of the ongoing edition on Sunday.The 17-year-old from Maharashtra clocked a personal best of 13.59 seconds to finish third in the final, missing out on the silver medal by just 0.02 seconds. China’s Zhang Keyi won gold with a time of 13.17 seconds, while France’s Anna Peeters took silver in 13.57 seconds.Ambure’s achievement was particularly significant as she was the only Indian athlete to compete at the Games. She also improved her personal best twice on the same day, underscoring her consistency and ability to serve on the big occasion.

Two personal bests in one day

Ambure had already set the tone in the semi-finals, qualifying for the medal race in 13.77 seconds. In the final she then increased her performance and was 0.18 seconds short to secure a place on the podium.The Maharashtra sprinter’s bronze adds another significant chapter to her growing career. In just 18 months, she has won medals at the U-18 Asian Championships, Asian Youth Games and Youth Olympic Games, establishing herself as one of India’s promising young hurdlers.Her performance also significantly boosted India’s athletics campaign in Dakar, with the girl making the most of her opportunity as the country’s sole representative in athletics.

India’s medal tally reached eight

Ambure’s bronze was India’s eighth medal at the Dakar Youth Olympics, taking the country’s tally to three silver and five bronze medals.Earlier, wrestler Taniya secured India’s first ever beach wrestling medal at the Games by winning silver in the women’s 75kg category. In the fight for gold, she lost 1:2 to China’s Min Zhao, the U17 world champion from 2025 in the category up to 69 kg. Taniya defeated American Matilda Hruba 3:1 in the semi-finals.Other silver medalists for India include Khushbu Rajakbhai Darjada in women’s 63kg judo and Tanvi Patri in badminton.Swimming also contributed three medals, with Dhinidhi Desinghu winning bronze in the women’s 100m and 200m freestyle, while Tirthank Pegu claimed bronze in the men’s 200m butterfly. Desinghu became the first Indian to win multiple medals in a single edition of the Youth Olympic Games, while Pegu secured India’s first ever men’s swimming medal at the Games.Rajkumari Lanchenbi Chanu added another bronze in women’s combined wushu changquan.