Despite Chronic Knee Injury, Tejaswin Shankar Scripts History with Commonwealth Decathlon Bronze

Indian Tejaswin Shankar, who holds the national record, made history in the men's decathlon by bagging the bronze medal with a score of 7976 at the 2026 Commonwealth Games. He became the first Indian to win a medal in the sport. Despite having a chronic knee injury, he performed well in this difficult two-day event, which consists of ten different disciplines.

The Indian, aged 27, is affected with chronic patellar tendinitis (jumper's knee). This injury caused him to withdraw from men's high jump at the Glasgow Games. Post his first attempt, his pain became severe, forcing him to withdraw from the competition crying in tears. However, he was not discouraged by the setback and made an excellent comeback into the decathlon.

Tejaswin was in second place after five events, with Canada's Damien Warner leading him. After the ninth event, the javelin throw, Tejaswin moved up to third. He finished fifth in the final event, the 1500m race, and won the bronze medal based on his overall points.