Asian Games 2026: R Madhavan's son Vedaant misses 200m freestyle final, Aneesh Gowda finishes fourth

Bollywood actor R Madhavan’s son Vedaant Madhavan missed out on a place in the men’s 200m freestyle final at the 20th Asian Games, while Aneesh Gowda finished as the first reserve. Vedaant finished sixth in his heat in 1:52.01 and was placed 13th overall. Aneesh, who competed in the same heat, clocked 1:51.20 to finish fourth and placed 11th overall.

Earlier, Vedaant had announced on Instagram that he would represent India at the Games. He said he was honoured to represent the country and wrote that representing India at the Asian Games had been a lifelong dream.

Vedaant wrote, “Representing my country at the Asian Games has always been a lifelong dream of mine." He also thanked his family, friends, coaches and everyone who had been part of his journey.

In the same post, Vedaant said he was scheduled to compete in the men’s 4x200m freestyle relay on September 21 and the men’s 200m freestyle on September 23, with heats in the morning and finals in the evening. He ended the note by saying he was proud to wear the tricolour.

Vedaant’s official Asian Games selection also includes the men’s 200m backstroke, along with the 200m freestyle and 4x200m freestyle relay. He was named in India’s 12-member swimming squad alongside Sajan Prakash and Srihari Nataraj.

He has competed at national and international events, won medals at meets including the Malaysian Open and Danish Open, and represented India at youth-level competitions. At the 2026 Senior National Aquatic Championships, he finished fourth in the 200m freestyle and won three relay bronze medals.

The swimming events at the 20th Asian Games Aichi-Nagoya 2026 are being held at the Tokyo Aquatics Centre from September 20 to 25. India’s squad is also chasing the country’s first Asian Games swimming medal since Sandeep Sejwal’s bronze in the men’s 50m breaststroke at Incheon 2014.