Asian Para Games 2026: Malaysia hit six-gold target, finish 12th in Aichi-Nagoya with 27 medals

Malaysia's para athletes have come home from the Aichi-Nagoya 2026 Asian Para Games with six gold medals, meeting the contingent's gold target. The final count of six gold, eight silver and 13 bronze, 27 medals in total, placed Malaysia 12th in the medal table when competition wrapped up on Saturday, 24 October, although the squad fell short of its targets for silver and bronze.

Targets met at the top

The Malaysian contingent had set out for Japan aiming for six gold, 10 silver and 16 bronze medals, with athletics, badminton and boccia identified as the main sources. The gold target was reached before the final day, and Youth and Sports Minister Dr Mohammed Taufiq Johari praised the athletes, coaches, sports associations, the National Sports Council and the National Sports Institute for the achievement.

The shortfall came lower down the podium, with two fewer silvers and three fewer bronzes than planned. Even so, the gold haul was the headline goal, and the golds were spread across several sports, from cycling and powerlifting to badminton and athletics.

The gold medal moments

Malaysia's first gold came on 19 October at the Izu Velodrome, where para track cyclist Zuhairie Ahmad Tarmizi won the men's 1,000m C4-C5 time trial in 1 minute 5.361 seconds.

Para powerlifting star Bonnie Bunyau Gustin followed on 20 October by defending his men's 72kg title, with Sarawak outlet Dayak Daily reporting a winning lift of 225kg. It was Malaysia's second gold of the Games.

In badminton, Cheah Liek Hou and Mohamad Faris Ahmad Azri went unbeaten through the men's doubles SU5 round-robin at Ichinomiya Municipal Gymnasium, finishing with a 21-8, 21-13 win over South Korea's Jeon Sunwoo and Kim Gi Yeon. Thailand's Pricha Somsiri and Nattaphon Thaweesap took silver.

On the athletics track, long jumper Wong Kar Gee won the men's T12 event at Mizuho Park Athletic Stadium with a leap of 6.74 metres on his second attempt. Bernama noted that it improved on the silver he won in the same event at Jakarta-Palembang 2018.

How Malaysia compared in the region

Thailand were Southeast Asia's leading nation, finishing seventh overall with 19 gold, 40 silver and 66 bronze for 125 medals. Indonesia were eighth with 15 gold among 73 medals. Malaysia were the region's third-best performers, ahead of the Philippines (two gold), Vietnam (one gold) and Singapore, who won 11 medals without a gold.

China dominated the Games, topping the table by a wide margin with more than 400 medals, while India recorded their biggest ever haul.

Looking ahead to home Games

The Nagoya campaign is an important checkpoint for Malaysia's para sport programme with a home multi-sport event on the horizon. Malaysia will host the 2027 SEA Games and ASEAN Para Games, and the Olympic Council of Malaysia launched a nationwide promotional tour for both events in Kuala Lumpur last week.

Key takeaways

• Malaysia finished the Aichi-Nagoya 2026 Asian Para Games with 6 gold, 8 silver and 13 bronze, 12th in the medal table.
• The six-gold target was met; the silver (10) and bronze (16) targets were not.
• Gold medallists included Zuhairie Ahmad Tarmizi (cycling), Bonnie Bunyau Gustin (powerlifting), Cheah Liek Hou-Mohamad Faris Ahmad Azri (badminton) and Wong Kar Gee (athletics).
• Thailand (7th) and Indonesia (8th) were the top Southeast Asian nations.
• Malaysia hosts the 2027 SEA Games and ASEAN Para Games.

FAQ

How many medals did Malaysia win at the 2026 Asian Para Games? Malaysia won 27 medals: six gold, eight silver and 13 bronze, finishing 12th overall.

Who won Malaysia's first gold medal in Aichi-Nagoya? Para cyclist Zuhairie Ahmad Tarmizi, who won the men's 1,000m C4-C5 time trial at the Izu Velodrome on 19 October.

When and where were the 2026 Asian Para Games held? The Games took place in Aichi Prefecture and Nagoya, Japan, from 18 to 24 October 2026, following the Asian Games held in the same region.

Sources: Bernama, Malay Mail, The Sun, Dayak Daily, Khel Now, NST