Aichi-Nagoya 2026 Asian Para Games:
Iran facing reduced athletics gold prospects amid merged classes
Iran’s para-athletics team will compete at the upcoming Aichi-Nagoya 2026 Asian Para Games with 44 athletes, but the merging of classes and removal of some events by the host country are expected to reduce the country’s gold-medal tally compared with the previous edition.
The Iranian athletics squad will be represented by 25 men and 19 women at the fifth edition of the multi-sport event, which will open at Nagoya’s Paloma Mizuho Stadium on October 18.
“The team is currently in very good condition and the athletes have posted impressive marks in training,” Iranian coach Bahman Rezaei told ISNA. “If they can reproduce those results at the Games, we will certainly achieve satisfactory results.”
However, he acknowledged that predicting Iran’s medal haul would be difficult because of changes to the competition program in Nagoya.
“Considering the merging of classes and the absence of some of the medalists from the previous edition, it is difficult to predict the number of para-athletics medals,” Rezaei said. “But it appears that our medal tally will be lower than in Hangzhou.”
“We won 21 gold, 20 silver and 11 bronze medals in Hangzhou 2022 with 52 athletes, but this time, with 44 athletes and some of the previous medalists missing, the conditions will certainly be more difficult,” he said. “Repeating the Hangzhou gold-medal tally will not be easy because some events have been removed by the host country and will not be held.”
Asked about the prospects of record-breaking performances in Nagoya, he said the athletes could achieve several new marks “if they reproduce the form they have shown in domestic competitions.”
Iran’s para-athletics team will be one of the largest components of the country’s delegation to the Asian Para Games, placing considerable responsibility on the squad to contribute to the overall medal tally.
Rezaei expressed hope that the team could once again play a significant role in Iran’s campaign and help the delegation improve its position in the medal standings.
“I hope that in Nagoya, we can perform successfully as we did in Hangzhou and play a major role in improving Iran’s position at the Asian Para Games,” he said.