The Asian Games 2026, to be held in Aichi–Nagoya, Japan from 19 September to 4 October 2026, marks the next major test of India’s sporting ambitions. Building on the historic 107-medal haul at the Hangzhou edition (Asian Games 2022, held in September–October 2023), Team India enters this cycle with a stronger institutional base, a broader talent pool, and a more structured performance pipeline.
At the centre of this continuing transformation is JSW Group's sporting arm, JSW Sports, working alongside the Inspire Institute of Sport (IIS) and JSW Inspire to strengthen athlete pathways, infrastructure and high-performance systems. These efforts have helped position the sporting environment in India on a stronger global footing while creating a sustainable future for Indian athletes.
JSW Inspire is now Team India's Official Sports Performance and Lifestyle Partner for the 2026 season. The role runs from the Glasgow Commonwealth Games through to Aichi-Nagoya. Needless to say, this is shaping up to be a big year for Indian Sports.
JSW Group's role goes well beyond funding. Its sports arm and IIS have built structured athlete development from the ground up, reshaping India's sporting talent pipeline.
After the Games, Mr. Parth Jindal, Founder of JSW Sports and IIS, said, “Our JSW Sports supported athletes were responsible for bringing home 17 medals out of India's total medal tally of 107.” Additionally, JSW also supported the entire boxing and shooting contingent representing India at the 2022 Asian Games through its partnership with NRAI and BFI.
For 2026, 49 athletes from IIS will compete at the Games. They'll take part across 10 sports: archery, athletics, boxing, fencing, judo, rowing, squash, swimming, taekwondo and wrestling. Two more Sports Excellence Programme (SEP) athletes join them, putting the JSW-backed cohort at 51.
For more than a decade, the JSW Group has driven India's sporting movement. JSW Sports and IIS lead at the elite level, and the JSW Foundation works at the grassroots.
Announcing the 2026 partnership, Jindal had said: "For us at JSW, 'Rukna Nahin Hai' is more than a slogan; it's our belief."
Reflecting this, the IIS runs a high-performance hub in Vijayanagar, Karnataka. Satellite centres in Himachal Pradesh, Hisar, Odisha and Manipur give athletes across India access to world-class training.
While Inspire Institute of Sport is backed by the JSW Group, it also has the support of nearly 30 corporate partners including Citi India, IndusInd Bank and Kotak.
Marishta Malhotra, Head of Sports Excellence and Scouting at JSW Sports, says: "At JSW, we have extensively concentrated on looking at sports that not only have several medals on offer but also lack a widespread support system. We want to nurture sports that are not widely known but are critical to moving India up the medal count."
That philosophy shaped India's Hangzhou 2023 campaign, and will keep shaping India’s sporting environment in the years ahead.
Aside from JSW Sports and IIS, JSW Foundation runs its own community sports programmes too, in wrestling, swimming, boxing and football. Local partners operate across Odisha, Himachal Pradesh, Maharashtra, Karnataka and Haryana, helping children in underserved regions reach structured training.
India's Hangzhou 2023 campaign offers the clearest lens on the Asian Games 2026. Neeraj Chopra, Tokyo 2020 Olympic champion in javelin, defended his 2018 Asian Games Gold with a season-best 88.88m.
Avinash Sable won a historic gold in the 3000m steeplechase. Parul Chaudhary became the first Indian woman to win 5000m gold. Indian boxers secured four Paris 2024 Olympic quota spots through their medals at Hangzhou.
Among the 51 JSW-backed athletes, several familiar names return. Sable, Chaudhary, Praveen Chithravel, Seema Kaliramna and Gulveer Singh anchor a 23-strong athletics roster. Antim Panghal, Nisha Dahiya, Manisha Bhanwala and Sunil Kumar lead a nine-athlete wrestling cohort.
Boxers Preeti Pawar and Sachin Siwach also return, alongside archer Jyothi Surekha and squash players Anahat Singh and Veer Chotrani.
Cricketers Shafali Verma and Axar Patel, of Delhi Capitals, round out the squad as Sports Excellence Programme athletes, and will don the JSW Inspire kit. Cricket returns to the Asian Games 2026 programme this year, giving the Indian Cricket Team a fresh shot at gold.
The JSW squad's depth reflects the ecosystem's maturity. It’s a testament to the focus on core Olympic disciplines, with JSW's athlete-grooming pathway central to that outcome.
The Hangzhou campaign won’t be viewed as a finish line, but as a launchpad toward the 2028 Olympic Games.
Central to that road is JSW Inspire’s partnership role, spanning the Glasgow Commonwealth Games, Aichi-Nagoya and beyond. For over a decade, JSW has proudly partnered with the Indian Olympic Association, supporting Team India across multiple editions of the Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games and Asian Games.
India's journey to the Asian Games 2026 is a story of long-term investment. The JSW Group's strategy, and the ecosystem powered by IIS and JSW Inspire, built that structure.
The same push for professionalism reaches the Indian Cricket Team too. It shows in the Indian Cricket Jersey and Indian cricket team kits players wear each season.
The road ahead for Sports in India is now built on systems, not surprises. That's the model the JSW Group is building on for Indian sport.
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