Indian wushu star Roshibina Devi secured her second consecutive Asian Games silver medal after losing to China's Zhang Xiaoyu in the women's 60kg Sanda final at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games on Thursday.
China's Zhang dominated the final, winning both rounds 5-0 to beat Roshibina 2-0 and claim the gold medal. Despite the defeat, Roshibina continued her remarkable record at the Asian Games, winning a medal at three successive editions. She had won bronze at the 2018 Jakarta Games and silver at the 2023 Hangzhou Games.
Roshibina had booked her place in the final on Wednesday after defeating Indonesia's Thania Kusumaningtyas 2-0 in the semifinal. Her campaign also included a notable victory over Vietnam's reigning world champion Nguyen Thi Thu Thuy.
Her silver took India's medal tally at the ongoing Asian Games to 14, including one gold, six silver, and seven bronze medals.
Who Is Roshibina Devi?
Roshibina was born on December 30, 2000, in Kwasiphai Mayai Leikai in Manipur's Bishnupur district, and competes in sanda, which is a wushu discipline that combines striking and throwing techniques.
The 25-year-old made her Asian Games debut at the 2018 Jakarta Games in the women's 60kg Sanda category. She defeated Pakistan's Mubashra Akhtar in the quarterfinals before losing to China's Cai Yingying in the semifinals, earning a bronze medal.
At the 2023 Hangzhou Asian Games, Roshibina went a step further by reaching the final of the women's 60kg category. She eventually settled for silver after losing to China's Wu Xiaowei.
Her performances in 2023 also earned her the Arjuna Award. The President of India's official citation recognised her silver medal at the Hangzhou Asian Games, along with her achievements at the 2023 World Wushu Championship and Moscow Wushu Stars Championship.
Roshibina Devi's Asian Games Selection Controversy
Roshibina's participation at the 2026 Asian Games came after a controversy surrounding India's women's 60kg Sanda selection.
Divyanshi Choudhary got her place in the Asian Games squad after beating Roshibina in the selection trials.
However, a medical examination showed a partial to high-grade ACL tear with large effusion, and she was replaced by Roshibina. The decision to replace Divyanshi was taken on medical grounds, the Wushu Association of India (WAI) said.
Later, Divyanshi alleged that she was mentally and physically harassed and questioned her exclusion from the Asian Games squad.
She also insisted that Roshibina had a hand in the situation with her and her family. Divyanshi made these allegations and Roshibina denied responsibility for the selection decision.
The WAI denied the charges and said that Divyanshi's replacement was done on the advice of doctors after she suffered an ACL injury.
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Divyanshi later minced her words and said that she understood the federation's decision to prioritise her recovery. She said she would focus on recovering from her injury and returning to competition.
The controversy came days before the Games for Roshibina. She later said she had limited time to prepare after finding out she had been selected for the squad, but went on to reach the final and claim her third successive Asian Games medal.
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