The Indian contingent for the Commonwealth Games 2026, commencing in Glasgow from July 23 to August 2, faces a significant talking point regarding gender representation. While India aims to improve upon its fourth-place finish from the previous edition, the total squad size has dropped to 125 athletes. Most notably, the representation of female athletes has suffered a steep decline. Only 48 women are part of the Glasgow squad, making up just 38.4% of the total contingent.
This marks a drop of over 10% compared to the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games, where female athletes accounted for nearly half of the squad at 49.5% (104 women out of 215 athletes). A similar trend was previously observed when Glasgow hosted the Games in 2014, where women comprised only 35.3% of the contingent (76 out of 215). However, female representation rebounded strongly at the Gold Coast 2018 Games, with women making up 47.65% of the squad. As the events get underway, attention shifts to how these roster shifts and reduced numbers will impact India’s overall campaign.
