'India should have more Gymnasts': Coach Ashok Mishra urges bigger contingent for future amid Asian Games 2026 | Exclusive

India's gymnastics contingent for the upcoming Asian Games 2026 has become a talking point and veteran coach Ashok Kumar Mishra expressed his disappointment over the country's limited representation, with Pranati Nayak emerging as the lone gymnast selected.

Mishra, who has been associated with Indian gymnastics for decades, said it was particularly disheartening to see India represented by such a small gymnastics contingent when compared with other countries competing at the continental level.

"Yeah, actually this is quite disheartening," Mishra said during an exclusive interview with MyKhel.

Recalling the previous Asian Games in Hangzhou, he said India had also travelled with a very small gymnastics contingent.

According to Mishra, the issue is not necessarily a lack of Indian gymnasts capable of competing at the highest level, but the qualification system and the standards used for final selection.

For the first time, the Asian Gymnastics Union introduced a qualifying system for the Asian Games. Mishra explained that several Indian gymnasts had qualified through the Asian Championship. However, the timing of the women's competition created a complication during the final selection process.

"Since the girls' competitions held, after the last date of the final entry, so the Government of India, they took the qualification standard of last year's Asian Championship," Mishra explained.

Under that standard, Pranati was the only contender to achieve the required score, resulting in her inclusion in the Asian Games team.

Mishra, however, believes there should have been some consideration for additional gymnasts who had achieved the required benchmarks.

"I think there should be some consideration, might be one more in women's section and two gymnasts in the men's section at least should have been given the chance to represent the country," he said.

The coach also stressed that winning a medal should not be the only criterion for deciding participation at a major multi-sport event.

"Everybody is not going to win medal, there are only three," Mishra said, while pointing out that many athletes participate in major competitions to gain experience and develop as competitors.

He opined that allowing more gymnasts who have reached the required standards to participate could help India's athletes gain valuable exposure and become stronger competitors in future international events.