India has picked two of its most decorated Olympians to lead the country into the 2026 Commonwealth Games. Weightlifter Mirabai Chanu and boxer Lovlina Borgohain will head the 126-strong Indian contingent when the Games open in Glasgow on July 23, adding yet another highlight to two already remarkable careers.
The Indian Olympic Association confirmed the news on Saturday, announcing that the pair will jointly carry the tricolour and take on baton-bearer duties as the opening ceremony unfolds at the OVO Hydro. It’s a rare honour, and one that puts both athletes front and centre as India begins its push for medals at the multi-sport event.
IOA president PT Usha called it a proud moment for the country, saying she was pleased to see Mirabai and Lovlina take on the role at the OVO Hydro and wishing the pair and the wider squad success in the competition ahead.
It’s hard to argue with the choice. Both women medalled at the same Olympics — Tokyo 2020 — and both did so in historic fashion. Mirabai took silver in the 49kg weightlifting category, only the second Indian weightlifter ever to stand on an Olympic podium. Lovlina, boxing in the 69kg division at the time, won bronze to become just the third Indian boxer to manage the feat.
Two Different Roads to Glasgow
Mirabai’s Commonwealth Games history speaks for itself. She topped the podium in Birmingham in 2022, four years after doing exactly the same in Gold Coast. Add to that a world title in 2017 and a string of other podium finishes since, and it’s clear why she remains one of the most bankable names in Indian weightlifting. Paris 2024 didn’t go her way — she came agonisingly close to a medal but missed out — and at 31, she’ll be heading to Scotland hungry to put that disappointment behind her and remind everyone why she’s been the face of Indian weightlifting for the better part of a decade.
Lovlina’s story has a different shape to it. She switched over from kickboxing early in her career and has climbed steadily ever since. Since her Tokyo breakthrough, she’s added a world title in 2023 and a silver medal at the Asian Games in Hangzhou that same year. Strangely enough, a Commonwealth Games medal is the one thing missing from her collection — something the 27-year-old will be eager to fix in Glasgow.
The Commonwealth Games run from July 23 through August 2, drawing competitors from across the Commonwealth for what’s shaping up to be one of the year’s marquee sporting events. With Mirabai and Lovlina out front, India’s campaign gets underway with two proven champions setting the tone.
India’s Squad for CWG 2026
3×3 Basketball (Wheelchair) Reena Rameshchandra Gupta, Irengbam Ritu Chanu, Jadhav Minakshi Harichandra, Rayannavar Laxmi Rayappa (Women’s)
Gymnastics Men’s team all-around: Tapan Mohanty, Tapeshwarnath Das, Swatish KP, Satyajit Mondal Women’s team all-around: Pranati Nayak, Nishka Agarwal, Eshita Rewale, Protistha Samanta
Athletics — Track Gurindervir Singh (Men’s 100m), Animesh Kujur (Men’s 200m), Vishal TK and Rajesh Ramesh (Men’s 400m, Mixed 4x400m relay), Gulveer Singh (Men’s 5000m/10,000m), Tejas Shirse (Men’s 110m hurdles), Yashas Palaksha and Santhosh Kumar Tamilarasan (Men’s 400m hurdles), Rashdeep Kaur, Neeru Pathak and Ansa Babu (Women’s 400m, Mixed 4x400m relay), Parul Chaudhary (Women’s 3000m steeplechase/5000m), Priyanka Goswami and Ravina Gaikwad (Women’s 10,000m walk)
Athletics — Field Dev Meena and Kuldeep Kumar (Men’s pole vault), Sarvesh Anil Kushare and Aadarsh Ram J (Men’s high jump), Tejaswin Shankar (Men’s high jump/decathlon), Murali Sreeshankar and Lokesh Sathyanathan (Men’s long jump), Praveen Chithravel and Selva Prabhu (Men’s triple jump), Samardeep Singh Gill and Tajinderpal Singh Toor (Men’s shot put), Neeraj Chopra, Rohit Yadav and Yash Vir Singh (Men’s javelin), Pooja Singh (Women’s high jump), Manpreet Kaur (Women’s shot put), Seema Kaliramna and Nidhi Rani (Women’s discus)
Para Athletics Track: Rakeshbhai Bhatt and Shreyansh Trivedi (Men’s 100m T38), Mohammed Basil M and Dilip Mahadu Gavit (Men’s 100m T47), Ramesh Shanmugam (Men’s 1500m T54) Field: Devender Kumar and Sagar Thayat (Men’s discus F44), Shubham Juyal and Soman Rana (Men’s shot put F57), Sharmila Dhankar and Shilpa K Shyla (Women’s shot put F57)
Lawn Bowls Putul Sonowal (Men’s singles), Nayanmoni Saikia (Women’s singles), Navneet Singh and Dinesh Kumar (Men’s pairs), Rupa Rani Tirkey and Pinki Singh (Women’s pairs)
Boxing Jadumani Singh (55kg), Sachin Siwach (60kg), Aditya Pratap Singh (65kg), Sumit Kundu (70kg), Ankush Ankush (80kg), Kapil Pokhariya (90kg), Narender Berwal (90+kg) — Men’s Sakshi Choudhary (51kg), Preeti Pawar (54kg), Jasmine Lamboria (57kg), Priya Ghanghas (60kg), Parveen Hooda (65kg), Arundhati Choudhary (70kg), Lovlina Borgohain (75kg) — Women’s
Judo Harsh Singh (60kg), Rohit Basir Majgul (66kg), Arun Kumar (73kg), Harsh Tokas (81kg), Karanjit Singh Maan (90kg), Avtar Singh (100kg), Yash Ghanghas (100+kg) — Men’s Asmita Dey (48kg), Shraddha Kadabul Chopade (52kg), Yamini Mourya (57kg), Unnati Sharma (63kg), Inunganbi Takhellambam (70kg), Ishroop Narang (78kg), Tulika Maan (78+kg) — Women’s
Para Powerlifting Ashok Kumar Malik and Parmjeet Kumar (Men’s lightweight), Sudhir Sudhir and Jhandu Kumar (Men’s heavyweight), Suman Devi and Jaspreet Kaur (Women’s lightweight), Kasthuri Rajamani (Women’s heavyweight)
Swimming Srihari Nataraj (50m/100m backstroke, 100m freestyle, 4x200m relay), Aryan Nehra (400m/800m/1500m freestyle, 4x200m relay), Sajan Prakash (50m/200m butterfly, 200m freestyle), Aneesh S Gowda (200m freestyle, 4x200m relay), Dhakshan Shashikumar (400m freestyle, 4x200m relay)
Para Swimming Ravi Veera Venkata Budigina (Freestyle 50m S7), Ali Imam (Freestyle 100m S13), Suyash Narayan Jadhav (Freestyle 50m S7), Chaitanya Vishwas Kulkarni (Freestyle 200m S14), Swatik Patil (Freestyle 50m S7)
Note: Tejas Nandakumar was originally named for the 200m S14 freestyle but was withdrawn following a classification eligibility issue.
Track Cycling Ronaldo Singh Laitonjam (1000m time trial), David Beckham Elkatohchoongo and Jemsh Singh Keithellakram (Men’s Elite Keirin), Dinesh Kumar and Rojit Singh Yanglem (Men’s endurance/pursuit), Sekhon Harshveer Singh (Men’s 4,000m team pursuit)
Para Track Cycling Lisha Das (Women’s)
Weightlifting Rishikanta Singh (60kg), M Raja (65kg), Ajaya Babu (79kg), Dilbag Singh (94kg), Lovepreet Singh (110+kg) — Men’s Mirabai Chanu (48kg), Gyaneshwari Yadav (53kg), Bindyarani Devi (58kg), Harjinder Kaur (69kg), Sanjana (77kg), Seram Nirupama Devi (86kg), Martina Devi (86+kg) — Women’s.
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