Aichi-Nagoya 2026 Asian Games:
Nemati wins kumite gold, Iran crashes out in men’s football
It was a day of mixed fortunes for the Iranian delegation at the Aichi-Nagoya 2026 Asian Games as Mahmoud Nemati claimed a second karate gold for the country while the U23 team crashed out in the group stage of the men’s football event following a 4-1 defeat against North Korea.
A day after Morteza Nemati triumphed in the men’s kumite -75kg class, reigning Asian champion Mahmoud replicated his elder brother’s success by winning the top prize in the +84kg category.
Nemati began his campaign with a 5-0 win against Vatthana Xayasan of Laos and then defeated Nepal’s Tenzing Sherpa by the same scoreline to set up a final clash with world bronze medalist Sanad Sufyani of Saudi Arabia in a repeat of the final showdown at June’s Asian Championships in Bali, where the Iranian had emerged victorious.
Nemati overcame a two-point deficit in the early stages of the contest to secure a 6-3 victory over his familiar foe, rounding out an impressive run for the Iranian karate squad, which also featured three silver medals on the previous day at the Toyohashi Gymnasium.
Ali-Asghar Asiabari settled for a runner-up finish in the men’s -84kg, following a 9-1 loss to high-profile Jordanian Mohammad Al-Jafari – the reigning Asian champion and bronze medalist at the 2025 World Championships.
In the women’s competition, meanwhile, 20-year-old prodigy Fatemeh-Zahra Saeidabadi fell to a controversial 6-4 loss to Malaysia’s Adeola Fay Robert in the -55kg final, though it still provided Iran women’s head coach Zangeneh with some consolation after world champion Atousa Golshadnejad crashed out in the first round of the -68kg class.
The Iranian trio of Fatemeh Sadeqi, Zeynab Hosseini and Sepideh Amini also won silver in the women’s team kata event, courtesy of a 5-0 defeat to world champion Vietnam in the final.
Sabre bronze
There was further success for Iran in fencing as the country’s sabre captain Ali Pakdaman secured the bronze medal in the men’s individual event.
Pakdaman and fellow Iranian fencer Mohammad Fotouhi competed in the individual sabre event, with Pakdaman reaching the semifinals to guarantee himself a place on the podium. Fotouhi bowed out in the quarterfinals after losing to his compatriot in an all-Iranian clash.
Pakdaman advanced from the group stage with four wins and one loss before beating an Uzbek fencer 15-13 in the round of 16 to reach the quarterfinals.
He then defeated Fotouhi 15-7 in the last eight before falling 15-9 to Chinese fencer Shen Chenpeng in the semifinals to settle for a third-place finish – the Iranian’s fifth medal in the history of the event.
Football humiliation
Having beaten the UAE 3-1 in its Group B opener before a goalless draw against China, head coach Hossein Abdi’s side appeared to be well on its way to a place in the quarterfinals when North Korea’s Ri Song Hung scored an own goal to put Iran U23 in front with 17 minutes played at the Wave Stadium Kariya.
The game, however, turned on its head in the space of three minutes just before halftime as Choe Kuk drew North Korea level in the 41st minute, with Ra Myong Song adding a second three minutes later.
Ra doubled the advantage six minutes after the break, and Paek Chung Song put the scoreline beyond Iran’s reach with 20 minutes remaining, as North Korea finished runner-up in the group standings with four points. China played to a goalless draw against the UAE in the simultaneous fixture to finish atop the group with five points, while the Iranian team was sent packing.
Beach volleyball
The pair of Abbas Pourasgari and Alireza Aqajani claimed a second successive victory in the preliminary phase of the men’s beach volleyball event on Tuesday, defeating Oman’s Ahmed Al-Housni and Khalfan Al Mamari 2-0 (21-12, 21-13) to join their fellow Iranian team of Abolhassan Khakizadeh and Amirali Qalenovi in securing a place in the knockout stage.
Pourasgari and Aqajani will conclude the group stage against the Thai duo on Saturday in what will be a top-spot decider in Pool F.
Khakizadeh and Qalenovi will also look to claim the top spot in Pool H when they take on the host pair of Kota Kurosawa and Taito Mizumachi today at the Hekinan Ryokuchi Beach Court.
3x3 basketball
Iran’s women’s 3x3 basketball team continued its perfect run in Pool B, defeating Chinese Taipei 14-10 to advance to the quarterfinals.
Shamim Nouri contributed seven points and eight rebounds, with Mahla Abedi adding six points and seven rebounds, as the Iranian trio claimed a third successive victory, having beaten Uzbekistan (19-5) and Japan (18-16) earlier.
Elsewhere at the multi-sport event, Iran claimed a first victory in four outings in men’s handball, defeating Kazakhstan 28-23 to finish fourth in Group B with three points and advance to the quarterfinals.
In kabaddi, Iran’s women’s team fell 37-23 to India to finish runner-up to its formidable opponent in Group A, while the men’s team defeated Malaysia 67-33.