Key Points

Madhya Pradesh athletes put on a dominant display, securing all four gold medals available on the second day of competition. The team's success was highlighted by wins in both men's and women's kayaking and canoeing doubles events. Gold medalists shared their excitement about competing in Kashmir and their future ambitions for international competitions. The festival continues with 17 medals up for grabs on the final day, featuring intense rowing competitions.

Key Points: Madhya Pradesh Sweeps Four Golds at Khelo India Water Sports Festival

  • Madhya Pradesh won gold in all four finals held on Day 2
  • Hosts Jammu and Kashmir added a silver to their medal tally
  • Seventeen medals will be decided on the final day of competition
  • All events being held are official Olympic medal events
  • Gold medalists expressed their ambitions for Asian Games and Olympics
3 min read

Khelo India Water Sports Festival 2025: Madhya Pradesh clinch all four golds on Day 2

Madhya Pradesh dominates Day 2, winning all four gold medals in canoeing and kayaking events at the Khelo India Water Sports Festival in Srinagar's Dal Lake.

"We loved Kashmir and the competition was great. Khelo India is a great platform and will help the youth a lot. - Sudhir Kumar and Prince Goswami"

Srinagar, August 22

Madhya Pradesh made a clean sweep of all four gold medals at stake on Day 2 of the Khelo India Water Sports Festival here at the Dal Lake on Friday.

Hosts Jammu and Kashmir added a silver to their overnight tally while two more silvers left Odisha at No. 2 in the medal standings, as per a release from SAI Media.

On another warm day, all four finals in canoeing and kayaking were scheduled in the second half of the day. Madhya Pradesh, a major force in water sports, won their first gold medal in the men's 500m kayaking doubles and never looked back after that to go No. 1 on the standings.

Seven gold medals have been decided so far, and on the final day on Saturday, 17 medals will be decided, and 10 of them will be in rowing. With several Services rowers representing the 28 states and Union Territories taking part in these Games, it should see some keen competition. All events being held here are Olympic medal events.

Niharika Singh and Chanderika Kushwaha, who won gold in K-2 Kayaking 500 metres women's doubles, said that they were glad to be in Kashmir and had prepared well for the event. They said the Sports Authority of India had helped them in their sports journey leading up to this event and were looking forward for future events like this.

Sudhir Kumar and Prince Goswami, who won gold in the C-2 Canoeing 500 metres men's event, said that in both the 2024 and 2025 national championships, they had won bronze. They said that they were practising for the Asian Games 2026 to be held in Japan. "We loved Kashmir and the competition was great," they said. "Khelo India is a great platform and will help the youth a lot."

Dally Bishnoi, the gold medal winner in the Kayaking 500 metres women's event, said she was thrilled to have clinched the gold medal. She said that the Khelo India gold would serve as a stepping stone on her way to success. Bishnoi said that she plans to bring India glory at the Asian Games and the Olympics and would train really hard for it.

RESULTS (All finals)Kayaking - K2 500m Men: 1. Aditya Singh and Manjeet (Madhya Pradesh) 01.41.59 sec 2. Shantosh Khwairakpam and Naoram James Singh (Odisha) 01:44.50 3. Vishal Dangi and Aditya Saini (Uttarakhand) 01.45.20 sec.

Canoeing - C2 500m Men: 1. Sudhir Kumar and Prince Goswami (Madhya Pradesh) 01:50.94 secs 2. Mohammad Hussain and Sajad Hussain (J&K) 01.52.61 sec 3. Pradeep Kumar and Abhay (Uttar Pradesh) 01.53.99 sec.

Kayaking - K1 500m Women: 1. Dally Bishnoi (Madhya Pradesh) 02.11.09 sec 2. Pukhrambamroji Devi (Uttarakhand) 02.14.06 sec 3. Nikita Sarkar (Kerala) 02.22.15 sec.

Kayaking - K2 500m Women: 1. Niharika Singh and Chandrakala Kushwaha 02.04.64 sec 2. Bidya Devi Oinam and Shruti Tanaji Chougule (Odisha) 02.08.10 3. Arathy Renjith and Heera Alphons (Kerala) 02.09.65 sec.

- ANI

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Reader Comments

P
Priya S
So wonderful to see these competitions happening in Kashmir! Dal Lake must be such a beautiful venue for water sports. Hope this brings more tourism and sporting opportunities to J&K.
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Aditya G
Great to see women athletes like Dally Bishnoi and Niharika Singh performing so well! 💪 Women in sports need more recognition and support. Hope they achieve their Olympic dreams!
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Sarah B
While MP's performance is commendable, I wish there was more regional diversity in the winners. Hope other states get better infrastructure and training to compete at this level.
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Vikram M
Khelo India is such a fantastic initiative! Giving young athletes a platform and preparing them for bigger events like Asian Games and Olympics. Future looks bright for Indian sports! 🇮🇳
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Nikhil C
Good to see Odisha maintaining second position. They've been investing heavily in sports infrastructure. Hope they catch up with MP in the final day events!

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