Canoers Arjun Singh and Sunil Singh Salam combined well to win India's first medal at the Asian Games since 1994, bagging a bronze in the men's double 1000m event, here on Tuesday.

The India duo clocked 3:53.329 seconds to finish third, winning the country's only second medal in the event in the Games' history.

In the 1994 Hiroshima edition of the Games, India had bagged a bronze in the same event through Siji Sadanandan and Johnny Rommel.

Uzbekistan's Shokhmurod Kholmuradov and Nurislom Tukhtasin Ugli won the gold, clocking 3:43.796s while Kazakhstan pair of Timofey Yemelyanov and Sergey Yemelyanov claimed the silver with a timing of 3:49.991s.

While Sunil is 24-year-old and from Moirang in Bishnupur district of Manipur, 16-year-old Arjun is from Baghpat in Uttar Pradesh but now he has shifted to Roorkee, Uttarakhand.

Sunil, who is competing in only his second Asian Games after the 2018 edition, said the bronze here nullified the disappointment at Jakarta.

"In 2018, we could have won a medal in the same event but things went haywire after my partner got sick on the day of competition. Now, it's second time lucky for me (here)," Sunil said after the event.

Arjun said he couldn't have asked for a better result in his maiden Asian Games.

"It's a dream come true for me, and also we are only the second medallist. A medal in my first Asian Games, I can't ask for more. My mother will be really happy," he said.

Both Sunil and Arjun currently train in the Bhopal SAI Centre under chief coach Pijush Baroi.

Sunil, son of a fisherman, and Arjun Singh, born to a factory worker, grew up 2000km apart from each other. But there is a binding thread — an unending passion for water sports unhindered by their difficult formative years.

For Sunil and Arjun, the medal was the culmination of the hard work they had put in despite the crushing odds in their lives.

"My father (Iboyaima Singh) is a fisherman and every morning and evening he would row his boat out and catch fish at the Loktak Lake and that is our family's source of income," Sunil said after winning the bronze.

"When I started it was very difficult as the boat and other equipments cost a lot. One pedal costs a minimum of Rs 40,000 and a boat costs Rs 4-5 lakh.

"Initially, my family and relatives chipped in to finance me but after I joined the Indian Army in 2017, I was able to manage myself," said Sunil, who is now a havildar in the Army.

Arjun shifted to Bhopal recently on the advice of Borai. They paired up for the first time a few months ahead of the Canoe Sprint World Championships in Germany in August, where they reached the final and finished ninth.

Arjun too trains at the SAI, Bhopal but that has not made him forget the tough days when his family struggled to make both ends meet.

"Now I am at the Bhopal SAI Centre where I am well taken care of," said Arjun.

PTI