Four women, from different corners of the country, carrying different expectations. On Tuesday, at Mizuho Park, they won India’s first and only track-and-field gold medal of the Asian Games in Nagoya, reclaiming the women’s 4x400m relay title with a time of 3:29.69.

In the last edition in Hangzhou, China had beaten India to gold, but this quartet proved why Indian women remain favourites with a seventh gold in the 4x400m relay at the Asian Games.

It was also a victory that capped India’s most successful day of the Games, so far.

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Neeru Dhanda, who had been hospitalised with an illness 10 days ago, won gold in the women’s trap shooting event. India also won its first-ever medal in the mixed 4x100m relay; Gulveer Singh added a bronze to the two silvers he had already won; the high jump produced a bronze; and, Indian boxers secured significant victories to march into the finals.

The rain had soaked the track, but the four Indian women had a gold medal to chase. The route to it was anything but straightforward.

Kiran got off to a slow start, handing over the baton in third place. Poovamma took over and set about making up ground. With every stride, she said, the snapshots of her recent struggles flashed in front of her. The dope ban, the “depression”, the lonely comeback.

She thought of her husband, who managed her training programme while continuing to work and cook for her, and her mother, who travelled to Pune to ensure she could train without distractions. “When my issues were going on, I was so depressed. I don’t know what situation I went through. It was my family and my husband,” she said.

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Having beaten by China in Hangzhou Asian Games, this quartet proved why Indian women remain favourites with a seventh gold in the 4x400m relay at the Asian Games.

The veteran, who had won relay gold at the 2014 and 2018 Asian Games, dug into her decade-plus experience and pulled India into the podium position, showing that age — she is 36 — had not slowed her down.

Prachi took over with India in front and held the advantage, charging towards a gold medal, and the DSP post. “I missed it last time because I won just a silver medal,” she said. “Before leaving for Nagoya, I submitted my measurements for the uniform.”

Vithya saw Prachi march towards her, and felt her heart beating fast. She had already broken PT Usha’s four-decade-old national record in the 400m hurdles, clocking 54.75 seconds for bronze and won silver in the 4×400 metres mixed relay. Now, she had one more job to finish.

She surged into the final lap with the lead, but Bahrain’s Salwa Eid Nasser was beginning to make her presence felt. Having received the baton in last place, Nasser tore through the field, picking off runners one by one and closing the gap.

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The pressure mounted. Vithya could see the Bahraini closing in, and the uncertainty began to creep in. “I told myself, ‘It’s the last race of your season, Vithya. Go for it. Whatever happens, come on, Vithya, you have to fight until the finish line. They all three did good, now it’s your turn’. So I went for it,” she said.

And she held on.

As Nasser closed in, Vithya drove towards the finish line, refusing to yield. The rain continued to fall, the gap continued to narrow, but Vithya had enough left to bring India home in 3:29.69. Bahrain finished second, China third.

For four women whose careers had been shaped by very different struggles, the finish line offered a common reward. Poovamma had returned from the lowest point of her career. Kiran hoped the medal would lighten the burden she carried for her family. Prachi had taken another step towards a long-held dream. And Vithya had found one more moment to fight through the pressure.

Four women, four journeys, one relay that brought them together — and brought India back to the top of the Asian Games relay podium.