Indian wushu star Naorem Roshibina Devi has moved within one victory of an Asian Games gold medal after advancing to the women’s 60kg Sanda final at the 2026 Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan.
Roshibina defeated Indonesia’s Thania Kusumaningtyas 2-0 in Wednesday’s semifinal at the Aichi Prefectural Martial Arts Hall in Nagoya, securing a place in the gold-medal contest. Reuters photographs from the venue confirm the two athletes competing in the September 23 semifinal.
The result guarantees the 25-year-old at least a silver medal. More significantly, it means Roshibina will leave a third consecutive Asian Games with a medal, having previously won bronze and silver.
Roshibina Devi Beats Thania Kusumaningtyas 2-0
Roshibina delivered the decisive performance against Kusumaningtyas in the women’s 60kg Sanda semifinal, winning the contest 2-0 to secure her place in Thursday’s title bout.
The victory also means India is guaranteed at least a silver medal in the event.
Roshibina will now face China’s Zhang Xiaoyu in the final on Thursday, September 24, with the Asian Games gold medal at stake.
Third Consecutive Asian Games Medal for Roshibina
Reaching the final continues an impressive sequence for the Manipuri athlete.
Roshibina won bronze at the 2018 Asian Games in Jakarta before improving to silver at the Hangzhou Asian Games. Her place in the 2026 final means she has now secured a medal at three successive editions of the continental competition.
The progression gives her another opportunity to complete the set with gold.
A victory against Zhang would deliver Roshibina her first Asian Games title.
Her Road to the Final
Roshibina’s run in Nagoya has included convincing performances.
She advanced through her opening contest against Bangladesh’s Most Khatun before meeting Chu Man Sin of Macao, China, in the quarterfinal.
Roshibina won that quarterfinal 5-0, a result that took her into the last four and had already guaranteed her a third successive Asian Games medal.
She then went one step further by beating Kusumaningtyas in the semifinal.
Her campaign now comes down to one final bout:
Roshibina Devi vs Zhang Xiaoyu — India vs China for Asian Games gold.
A Remarkable Route Into India's Asian Games Squad
Roshibina's run carries additional significance because she was not originally selected for India's 2026 Asian Games team.
At the selection trials in Srinagar in June, Divyanshi Choudhary defeated Roshibina in the semifinals and went on to earn the original place in India's wushu squad.
According to the Wushu Association of India, an MRI later showed that Divyanshi had suffered a high-grade ACL tear with large effusion, ruling her out and opening a place for Roshibina.
That late opportunity has now taken Roshibina all the way to the gold-medal bout.
Roshibina Has Already Matched India’s Best Wushu Result
By reaching the final, Roshibina has also matched India’s best result in wushu at the Asian Games: a silver medal or better.
India has yet to win an Asian Games gold in the sport, making Thursday's final an opportunity for Roshibina to go beyond the country's previous benchmark.
Her consistency is equally notable. Winning medals across three successive Asian Games requires sustained performance across an eight-year span beginning with Jakarta 2018.
What Is Sanda in Wushu?
Roshibina competes in Sanda, the full-contact combat discipline of competitive wushu.
Unlike wushu's performance-based Taolu events, Sanda involves direct competition between two athletes. Fighters use striking and throwing techniques within the sport's rules, with bouts decided through rounds and scoring.
Roshibina competes in the women's 60kg category.
That distinction matters because “wushu” encompasses different forms of competition; Roshibina's event is a combat discipline rather than the choreographed routines commonly associated with some other wushu categories.
Gold-Medal Final Against Zhang Xiaoyu Next
Roshibina’s attention now turns to China’s Zhang Xiaoyu, who will stand between the Indian and her first Asian Games gold medal.
The women’s 60kg Sanda final is scheduled for September 24 at the Aichi Prefectural Martial Arts Hall.
Whatever the outcome, Roshibina is already guaranteed at least silver and a third consecutive Asian Games medal.
But the final gives her the opportunity to take the one step she could not take after reaching the title bout at the previous Games: finish on top of the podium.
For an athlete who was not initially part of India's squad, that would complete an extraordinary return to the Asian Games stage.
