Kula Pradip Bhagawati

When the Indian contingent marches into the Paloma Mizuho Stadium in Nagoya, Japan on September 19 for the opening ceremony of the 20th Asian Games, listen for the names, Nyeman, Rupa,Isharani, Amaarjit, Seram, Mayanglambam, Hanjabam, Mandengbam, Phairembam, Philem, Laitonjam, Hmarzote, Tsukru, Tepa and Asmita along with Lovlina-Mirabai.
18 names. 6 states. 7 sports. That is not just a contingent. That is the Northeast playing the Asian Games inside the Asian Games.
India has cleared 492 athletes for Aichi-Nagoya 2026. Of them, 18 are from the Northeast — the biggest ever representation from the region. Manipur alone has 9. And for once, the story is not just about Lovlina and Mirabai.

From Visa Denial to the Mat

Let us start where the last Asian Games ended badly. Nyeman Wangsu, Wushu player, Arunachal Pradesh. In 2023, she was stopped at the airport. China refused her visa because she was from Arunachal. She watched the Games on TV. On September 19, 2026, she will finally compete in Women's Changquan. With her is Rupa Bayor, Taekwondo Poomsae — World No.6, Asia No.1, the first Indian to win back-to-back Asian Poomsae medals. Arunachal, which had never sent a single athlete to the Asian Games, will have two. Their selection is not just about sport. It is about a stamp on a passport.

Assam’s New Shuttle
We know Lovlina Borgohain — Tokyo olympic medal winner, from Golaghat, now fighting in 75 kg, chasing the one medal she does not have — an Asian Games Gold. But look next to her: Isharani Baruah, Badminton. From Assam, in a sport where the Northeast has rarely been seen at the Asian level. Her selection means Assam will have a presence on both the boxing ring and the badminton court. And O Amarjit Singha — Sepak Takraw. A sport the rest of India barely understands, but Manipur and Nagaland live and breathe. A sport where India has been knocking on the medal door since 2018.

Manipur: The Factory
Nine out of 18. Half the Northeast contingent is just one state — Manipur. You know Mirabai Chanu and Seram Nirupama Devi — the two lifters who can lift double their body weight. Mirabai, 32, with three straight Commonwealth golds, lifting 190kg in her last outing.
But Manipur’s story in Nagoya is bigger: Naorem Roshibina Devi, Suraj Singh Mayanglambam, Langlentombi Devi Hanjabam — all three in Wushu. Manipur is to Wushu what Haryana is to wrestling. Jadumani Singh Mandengbam — Boxing. 22, Commonwealth silver, fearless. And then the water — Soniya Devi Phairembam, Gyaneshwor Singh Philem, Naocha Singh Laitonjam — Canoeing & Kayaking. Three names from the Loktak Lake that has produced more water sports athletes than any lake in India. Nine athletes, four sports, one state smaller than Nagpur district.

The Nets and the Mats
Mizoram: Lalremsiami Hmarzote — Hockey. The only one from the state, but one who has been in the Indian women’s hockey team since she was 18. She scored in Tokyo Olympics.
Nagaland: Menenu Tsukru and Seyiekhrieno Tepa — both Sepak Takraw. Nagaland has never had an Asian Games medallist. Sepak Takraw is its best bet. In Hangzhou, India’s women’s regu team won bronze — four of them were from Nagaland and Manipur.
Tripura: Asmita Dey — Judo. The history-maker. First Indian ever to win a Commonwealth Games gold in judo. Now she goes to the birthplace of judo — Japan — to fight the Japanese.

Why This Matters
18 out of 492 is just 3.6%. But count the sports: Wushu (5 players), Sepak Takraw (3), Weightlifting (2), Canoeing (3), Boxing (2), Taekwondo, Badminton, Judo, Hockey. These are not the glamour sports of cricket stadiums. These are the sports played in community halls in Itanagar, in muddy fields in Thoubal, on Loktak Lake at 5 am, on badminton courts in Guwahati where the roof leaks. The Asian Games 2026 will be India’s attempt to cross 100 medals again after 106 in Hangzhou.
If it does, the road will go through Golaghat, Nongpok Kakching, Agartala, Aizawl, and the Loktak Lake. Because when the Northeast says it is going to Nagoya, it is not sending players. It is sending a team within the team.

[Kulapradip Bhagawati is a prominent senior sports journalist from Assam, recognized as the first journalist from Northeast India to cover three major global sports events: the Olympic Games, the FIFA World Cup, and the Cricket World Cup.]