Asian Para Games: Kapil Parmar Clinches Bronze With 69-Second Ippon Victory In Para-Judo
India’s Kapil Parmar secured a bronze medal in the men’s J1-70kg para-judo event at the 2026 Asian Para Games on Monday, defeating Indonesia’s Rafli Ahnaf Shidqi by ippon in just one minute and nine seconds at the Aichi Prefectural Martial Arts Hall.
The victory marked India’s third medal on the opening day of the competition and saw Parmar bounce back from his semifinal defeat earlier in the day.
The Paris Paralympics bronze medallist, ranked eighth in the world, overcame 17th-ranked Shidqi in 69 seconds to secure a place on the podium.
Parmar began his campaign with a hard-fought quarterfinal victory over Mongolia’s Baatarsuren Bat-Erdene, winning by ippon after four minutes and 53 seconds of golden-score action to advance to the semifinals.
However, his hopes of reaching the gold-medal contest ended after he suffered an ippon defeat against Indonesia’s Junaedi in the semifinals.
The Indian judoka recovered strongly in the bronze-medal bout, producing a decisive performance to defeat Shidqi in just 69 seconds.
Hailing from Sehore in Madhya Pradesh, Parmar has competed in para-judo since 2017 and has established himself as one of India’s leading athletes in the discipline.
Competing in the J1 classification for visually impaired athletes, he trains under coach Munawar Anzar Ali Siddiqui.
Parmar’s international achievements include a bronze medal at the 2024 Paris Paralympics, silver at the previous Asian Para Games in Hangzhou and gold at the 2019 Commonwealth Judo Championships.
He has also won multiple International Blind Sports Federation (IBSA) Grand Prix titles and seven national gold medals.
In recognition of his achievements, Parmar received the Arjuna Award for 2024–25. He is also part of the government’s Target Olympic Podium Scheme (TOPS), which supports India’s leading athletes.
The bronze medal in Aichi-Nagoya adds another achievement to Parmar’s international career and strengthens India’s medal tally at the continental competition.
