India's Manu Francis and Prince Noble clinched the silver medal in the men's skiff sailing event at the Asian Games 2026 in Gamagori City, Japan, on Thursday, delivering the country's first sailing medal of the Aichi-Nagoya edition on their Asian Games debut.
A Consistent Campaign
The Indian pair accumulated 23 points across nine races, finishing behind China's Wen Zaiding and Liu Tian, who took gold with 16 points, while Hong Kong's Akira Luke Sakai and Russel Aylsworth claimed bronze with 24 points. In sailing, points are awarded by finishing position in each race, with the lowest total winning.
The Indians won race three and finished second in races one, five and nine in a consistent campaign. In the ninth and final race, their second-place finish sealed the medal. The result took India's overall tally at the Games to 62 medals.
From Ernakulam to the Podium
The 31-year-old Francis and the 30-year-old Noble are first cousins and childhood friends from Ernakulam, Kerala. They took up sailing as schoolchildren, trained at the National Sailing School in Bhopal and the Muziris Yachting Club in Kerala, and joined the Indian Army, where they continued their development at the Army Yachting Node.
The pair had earlier won bronze at the 2022 Asian Sailing Championship in Abu Dhabi and the 2023 edition in Pattaya.
After the race, Noble — whose fisherman father died during the catastrophic 2018 Kerala floods — told PTI that the medal was special: "It was our first Asian Games and winning a medal is very special. It was a tough competition and we somehow won the silver." Francis added that the pair had to survive difficult, windy conditions they were not comfortable with. "In light wind conditions, we are pretty good. We train in India, and in India almost every time it is a light wind," he said.
Adding to India's Sailing History
The medal takes India's historical Asian Games sailing tally to 24 medals, comprising one gold, nine silver and 14 bronze. The country's sole sailing gold came at the 1982 New Delhi Games, when Farokh Tarapore and Zarir Karanjia topped the podium.
Sources:
India's Manu Francis and Prince Kurisinkal Noble clinch men's skiff silver in Asiad Sailing — The Hindu
Prince Noble and Manu Francis win silver medal in men's skiff sailing at Asian Games 2026 — Sportstar
Manu Francis and Prince Noble Claim Silver in Men's Skiff Sailing at Asian Games — Mathrubhumi English
A Consistent Campaign
The Indian pair accumulated 23 points across nine races, finishing behind China's Wen Zaiding and Liu Tian, who took gold with 16 points, while Hong Kong's Akira Luke Sakai and Russel Aylsworth claimed bronze with 24 points. In sailing, points are awarded by finishing position in each race, with the lowest total winning.
The Indians won race three and finished second in races one, five and nine in a consistent campaign. In the ninth and final race, their second-place finish sealed the medal. The result took India's overall tally at the Games to 62 medals.
From Ernakulam to the Podium
The 31-year-old Francis and the 30-year-old Noble are first cousins and childhood friends from Ernakulam, Kerala. They took up sailing as schoolchildren, trained at the National Sailing School in Bhopal and the Muziris Yachting Club in Kerala, and joined the Indian Army, where they continued their development at the Army Yachting Node.
The pair had earlier won bronze at the 2022 Asian Sailing Championship in Abu Dhabi and the 2023 edition in Pattaya.
After the race, Noble — whose fisherman father died during the catastrophic 2018 Kerala floods — told PTI that the medal was special: "It was our first Asian Games and winning a medal is very special. It was a tough competition and we somehow won the silver." Francis added that the pair had to survive difficult, windy conditions they were not comfortable with. "In light wind conditions, we are pretty good. We train in India, and in India almost every time it is a light wind," he said.
Adding to India's Sailing History
The medal takes India's historical Asian Games sailing tally to 24 medals, comprising one gold, nine silver and 14 bronze. The country's sole sailing gold came at the 1982 New Delhi Games, when Farokh Tarapore and Zarir Karanjia topped the podium.
Sources:
India's Manu Francis and Prince Kurisinkal Noble clinch men's skiff silver in Asiad Sailing — The Hindu
Prince Noble and Manu Francis win silver medal in men's skiff sailing at Asian Games 2026 — Sportstar
Manu Francis and Prince Noble Claim Silver in Men's Skiff Sailing at Asian Games — Mathrubhumi English
