Aichi-Nagoya, 23 September (H.S.): Indian rowers Satnam Singh, Salman Khan and Balraj Panwar delivered strong performances in their respective events on Wednesday to qualify for the finals at the Asian Games.

Satnam Singh and Salman Khan advanced to the A Final of the men’s double sculls. The duo clocked 6:15.63 in their heat to finish second. They ranked fourth in the combined standings of the two heats. The double sculls final will be held on Thursday.

In the men’s single sculls, Balraj Panwar also qualified for the A Final. He finished third in his heat with a time of 6:52.84 and placed fourth in the combined standings after the two heats. He will now have an opportunity to compete for a medal.

Following these strong qualifying performances, the Indian rowing contingent will look to maintain its momentum in the finals and challenge for podium finishes.

The Indian men’s kayak four team also qualified for the final in the 500m event. The quartet of Harshvardhan Shaktawat, Varinder Singh, L. Naocha Singh Oinam and Arun Singh finished third in their heat with a time of 1:29.447, finishing 5.594 seconds behind the leading Chinese team.

The fourth day of the Asian Games features several important contests for the Indian contingent, with a number of athletes in medal contention. Olympic medallists Mirabai Chanu and Manu Bhaker will also be among the key figures in India’s campaign.

India have won seven medals at the Asian Games so far, comprising one gold, four silver and two bronze medals.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar