Iran shines in Nagoya: Six more golds, one-place rise and historic achievement for women

Pars Today – Iran’s sports delegation wrapped up its campaign at the Nagoya Asian Games with 19 gold, 18 silver and 15 bronze medals, finishing sixth in the medal standings. Compared with the previous edition, Iran won six more gold medals and climbed one place in the rankings.

According to Pars Today, citing IRNA, the 20th edition of the Asian Games, hosted by Japan in Nagoya, concluded with a successful performance by Iran’s delegation. The delegation, known as the Shajareye Tayyebeh of Minab, won 19 gold, 18 silver and 15 bronze medals to finish sixth in the medal standings, delivering a different performance from the previous edition. Winning six more gold medals than at Hangzhou was a significant achievement, secured through the efforts of Iran’s Ministry of Sports, National Olympic Committee and sports federations.

The performance of the Islamic Republic of Iran’s delegation at the 2026 Nagoya Asian Games was marked by a range of quantitative and qualitative achievements, reflecting an overall improvement in Iran’s standing in continental sports, an increase in the quality of its medal haul, a broader pool of medal-winning events and the emergence of new talent in Iranian elite sports.

Iran’s delegation, comprising 304 athletes, won 52 medals — 19 gold, 18 silver and 15 bronze — to finish sixth in the Games’ medal table, one place higher than in the previous edition. The rise in the medal standings, along with the significant increase in the number of gold medals, was among the most important indicators of the delegation’s performance at this edition.

This achievement came despite the fact that the country had been embroiled in an imposed war for the past 15 months. With iron determination and remarkable dedication, Iran’s sports community worked to maintain the athletes’ readiness, promote Iranian sports and ensure a strong presence at the Asian Games.

Iran’s gold-medal tally rose from 13 at Hangzhou to 19 in Nagoya, representing a 38.9 percent increase in the delegation’s gold-medal productivity. Gold medals also accounted for 36.5 percent of Iran’s total medal haul in Nagoya, up from 24.1 percent in Hangzhou, indicating an improvement in the quality of the medals won.

Another major achievement for Iran’s delegation at the Nagoya Asian Games was winning medals in 21 sports, setting a new record for the number of medal-winning sports for Iran at the Asian Games. This surpassed the previous record of 20 sports. The achievement demonstrates that Iran has maintained and expanded the range of its medal-winning disciplines while reducing its reliance on a limited number of sports for success.

Among the highlights of the delegation’s performance were the outstanding results of Iranian athletes in wrestling, taekwondo, weightlifting, volleyball, rowing and karate, as well as notable performances in esports, wushu, athletics and kurash. Medals in sports such as gymnastics, kabaddi, sport climbing, basketball and 3x3 basketball further expanded the diversity of Iran’s medal-winning disciplines.

However, the performance of Iran’s women was one of the most notable achievements of this edition. Iranian women won three gold medals, recording their best-ever performance at a single edition of the Asian Games.

Saghar Moradi won Iran’s first-ever women’s taekwondo gold medal at the Asian Games, while Fatemeh Mojallal claimed Iran’s first-ever women’s rowing gold. These achievements, along with Reyhaneh Karimi’s winning Iran’s first-ever women’s weightlifting bronze medal, the country’s first women’s team medal in kata, and Iran’s first-ever women’s medal in an athletics event, were among the key signs of the expansion of women’s medal-winning achievements at this edition.

Nagoya also brought a series of firsts and historic records for Iranian sports. Mohammad Reza Tayebi secured the shot put gold medal 52 years after Iran’s previous gold in the event and set an Asian Games record, marking one of the most significant achievements in Iranian athletics.

Ali Davoudi broke the Asian and Asian Games records, while Ali Alipour also set a new world record. Iran’s swimmers reached an Asian Games final for the first time in 16 years, while the country also won a historic medal in men’s artistic gymnastics in the vault. Other milestones included Iran’s first-ever medal in esports and a historic men’s padel medal in Iran’s first appearance in the event.