Karnataka’s Manikanta Completes Golden Hat-Trick; Anushka Bhagat Wins Second Medal for Chhattisgarh

Raipur, March 2026: Karnataka swimmer Manikanta L continued his outstanding form by clinching his third consecutive gold medal, completing a hat-trick in the 200m individual medley at the Khelo India Tribal Games. Odisha’s Anjali Munda also added to her tally by winning another gold in the women’s category on the second day of the competition on Thursday.

There was good news for host Chhattisgarh as local swimmer Anushka Bhagat secured second place in the women’s 200m individual medley, earning her second silver medal of the tournament.

In the inaugural edition of the Khelo India Tribal Games, 30 states and Union Territories are participating, with around 3,800 athletes competing across nine disciplines. A total of 106 gold medals are at stake in sports such as archery, athletics, football, hockey, swimming, weightlifting, and wrestling, while mallakhamb and kabaddi have been included as demonstration sports.

Manikanta, who had already won gold medals in the 100m breaststroke and 50m butterfly on Wednesday, maintained his dominance by winning the 200m individual medley in 2:25.93 seconds. Riaz Tripura of Tripura secured silver with a time of 2:34.04 seconds, while Odisha’s Kanhu Soren took bronze in 2:36.21 seconds.

In the women’s 200m individual medley, Anjali Munda clocked 2:53.82 seconds to win gold. Anushka Bhagat of Chhattisgarh finished second with 2:59.33 seconds, while Odisha’s Anjali Malik claimed bronze with a time of 3:06.13 seconds.

Karnataka currently leads the medal tally with six gold and two silver medals, followed by Odisha with three gold, one silver, and four bronze medals.

In weightlifting, Assam’s Monikha Sonowal and Mizoram’s Isak Malsawmtluanga displayed remarkable resilience by winning gold medals despite injuries. Monikha, competing in the women’s 48kg category, lifted a total of 132kg (57kg in snatch and 75kg in clean and jerk) despite a knee injury. Odisha’s Deepa Rani Malik won silver with 120kg, while Alaska Alina from Andaman and Nicobar secured bronze with 115kg.

Monikha, a 19-year-old from Dhemaji district in Assam, revealed that she had suffered a knee injury during training three months ago and was nearly withdrawn from the competition. However, she chose to compete and succeeded under pressure.

Similarly, Isak Malsawmtluanga from Mizoram overcame a back injury to win gold in the men’s category with a total lift of 235kg, including a strong comeback in the clean and jerk. Jharkhand’s Babulal Hembram won silver with 230kg, while Odisha’s Subrata Naik took bronze with 228kg.