Khelo India Winter Games second leg in Gulmarg from February 23 to 26
Army will defend its overall championship title in J&K
The Union Minister for Youth Affairs and Sports, Mansukh Mandaviya, has announced the dates for the Gulmarg leg of the Khelo India Winter Games-2026, which will be held from February 23 to 26 in J&K.
The first leg of KIWG 2026, featuring ice sports, was successfully held in Ladakh from January 20 to 26, while Gulmarg will host the snow sports competitions. The Army will defend its overall championship title in J&K.
“The Gulmarg leg is coming at the back of the Winter Olympics and this is the perfect time to host the Khelo India Winter Games. We had a very successful first phase in Leh (Ladakh) and surely, we will see the same excitement in Jammu & Kashmir as athletes will once again battle with nature and challenging conditions,” said Mandaviya.
“Every season of the Khelo India Winter Games has seen exciting performances and rising competition. In Leh, the addition of figure skating enhanced the competitive intensity, and in Gulmarg, we are expecting some impressive timings on the Kongdoori slopes,” he added.
Officials said until the introduction of the Khelo India Winter Games, winter sports in India had very limited “visibility, awareness, or structured competition. Ice and snow disciplines largely remained niche pursuits with negligible public engagement and sporadic athlete participation at the international level.”
“The Khelo India Winter Games have fundamentally transformed India’s winter sports ecosystem by creating a national competitive platform for both ice sports and snow sports, significantly expanding participation, performance standards and public awareness,” the statement said.
Gulmarg will feature four medal disciplines—ski mountaineering, alpine skiing, nordic skiing (cross-country), and snowboarding, with around 400 athletes expected to compete, and alpine skiing drawing the highest participation.
