Harita Bhadra didn’t have any idea what the results were after she finished the women’s 200m race toe-to-toe with Japanese sprinter Abigeirufuka Ido.
While Shanti Pereira of Singapore won the race and Chinese sprinter Yujie Chen stood second, it was a photo finish for the bronze medal. The Indian sprinter pipped Ido by one-hundredth of a second to win India’s only sprint medal at the 2026 Asian Games.
“When I heard my name and Unnathi quipped that you came third, I realized that I have won a medal. It was a very close finish and I was not sure who came third,” Harita told reporters.
Her medal ends India’s eight-year wait for a podium in the women’s 200m after Dutee Chand had won 100m and 200m silvers at the 2018 Jakarta edition.
Breakthrough year
Besides sprinting, Harita does many other things. She is a graduate in sports science from Loughborough University and runs a handmade jewellery brand called ‘Daagina’ (jewellery in Marathi).
The 23-year-old from Mumbai is enjoying her breakthrough year and the Asian Games medal is a culmination of it. “As a coach, the medal validates the plan I had prepared for Harita. According to that, she was set to peak in September and she did that,” Harita’s coach Rohit Mane told The Indian Express.
Starting the season in February at the Indoor National Championships, Harita captured everyone’s attention with a 7.32s run in 60m. She followed it up with a timing of 23.14s in 200m at the National Inter-State Championships to book her Asiad berth. Earlier this month, she scorched through the Mondo track in New Delhi during the Indian Athletics Series finale to clock 11.22s in 100m, second fastest behind Dutee’s national record of 11.17s.
“As the results show, she has improved with every event and that is what makes her one of most promising athletes in the country. Her hunger to learn and improve everyday,” said Rohit.
When Harita lined up for the women’s 200m final, she was the fourth fastest woman on the list behind Pereira, Chen and Ido and one of the reasons that she could beat the Japanese sprinter is because of her good finishing.
“Harita is a brilliant starter but I had made it clear to her that she needs to focus on finishing because that is what matters in the 200m sprint. There is no point of getting excited and fading away at the end. She followed that and saved her energy for the last. For the first 120m, she was not in the lead but as others faded away and the race neared its end, she did what was required,” explained Rohit.
Juggling careers
For the longest time, Harita was a student-athlete, especially during her time at Loughborough University. After she graduated last year, she wanted to focus on two things: her athletics career and the jewellery brand.
“I enjoyed my graduation. It was fun and the best part was that it matched my athletics career. What I studied helped me understand my body better while sprinting,” Harita had told this paper before leaving for the Asian Games.
“Once I was done with my graduation, I decided to give full attention to athletics and also handmade jewellery which is sort of my baby. I design these jewellery pieces and sell them online on Instagram,” said Harita. “The reason I could pursue the sport was that I enjoy it a lot,” she added.
Harita started athletics at the age of 12. For her, enjoying the sport was more important than winning. “The good thing about starting that early is that you enjoy the sport to the fullest. One of the reasons why I kept playing was because it helps me relax,” she said.
After her graduation, Harita started training at the Jio Institute in Mumbai under Reliance Foundation coach Rohit, and the medal is the duo’s first major one together.
“We both were crying on the video call right after her win. We had planned this for one year and let me tell you, this is the biggest moment of our lives,” said Rohit.
In addition to being a jewellery entrepreneur, sports science grad and athlete, Harita Bhadra is now an Asian Games medallist.