Pramod Bhagat Clinches SL3 Gold, Wins Record Sixth World Title

Last Updated:February 14, 2026, 17:36 IST

Pramod Bhagat won his fourth consecutive SL3 singles gold at the BWF Para World Championships, surpassing Lin Dan, and also clinched doubles gold with Sukant Kadam.

India’s Pramod Bhagat secured the men’s SL3 gold medal with a decisive straight-game victory over Indonesia’s Muhammad Al Imran at the BWF Para World Championships on Saturday.

The 37-year-old Bhagat dominated his opponent, winning 21-12, 21-18 in the final. This triumph marks his fourth consecutive singles gold at the world championships and his sixth overall title in the category.

Bhagat’s victory highlights his enduring dominance in the SL3 division, which is for standing players with significant lower limb impairments.

Having contracted polio at the age of five, Bhagat previously won world championship singles gold medals in 2009, 2015, 2019, 2022, and 2024.

With Saturday’s win, Bhagat surpassed China’s Lin Dan, who won five men’s singles world titles in able-bodied badminton, making Bhagat the most decorated singles champion in the sport’s world championship history.

This victory also represents a significant comeback for Bhagat after serving an 18-month suspension for violating the Badminton World Federation (BWF) anti-doping whereabouts clause, which caused him to miss the 2024 Paris Paralympics.

Bhagat later teamed up with Sukant Kadam to win the men’s doubles SL3-SL4 title, defeating fellow Indians J. Dilli and N. Sivakumar 21-19, 21-16 in the final. The top-seeded Indian pair controlled crucial phases of the match, completing a golden double for Bhagat.

In other results, N. Sivakumar was the runner-up in the men’s singles SL4 category, losing to top seed Lucas Mazur of France 12-21, 21-19, 14-21 in the final.

India’s M. Ramadass, the top seed in women’s singles SU5, claimed silver after an 11-21, 11-21 defeat to China’s Yang Qiu Xia in the final.

Top seed N. Sumathy Sivan also finished as the runner-up in the women’s singles SH6 category after a hard-fought three-game final against China’s Li Feng, ending in a 14-21, 21-12, 17-21 defeat.

(With PTI Inputs)

News sports badminton Pramod Bhagat Clinches SL3 Gold, Wins Record Sixth World Title

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