A strong field of 129 Para judokas from 18 nations will compete at the Aichi-Nagoya 2026 Asian Para Games, with the action taking place at the Aichi Prefectural Martial Arts Hall from 19 to 21 October.
At the previous Asian Para Games in Hangzhou, China topped the Para judo medals table with 11 medals, including five golds, followed by Kazakhstan with three golds, while Iran and Japan each claimed two gold medals.
The nations continued their strong performances at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games, with China and Japan each claiming two gold medals to finish third and fourth in the medals table, respectively. Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan also enjoyed success, each winning one gold medal. The 5th Asian Para Games will provide another opportunity for Asia’s leading Para judo nations to continue their dominance on the mat, with hosts Japan eager to impress the home crowd.
The host nation will have 13 judokas set to make the most of home advantage. Among them will be Yujiro Seto, who will compete in the men’s -73kg J2 category. Seto took bronze at the Hangzhou 2022 Asian Para Games before going on to win Paralympic gold at Paris 2024, marking a significant step forward in her Paralympic journey.
Japan will also have Junko Hirose in the women’s -57kg J2 category. Hirose won gold at Hangzhou 2022 and repeated that success at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games. Her main challenger could once again be Uzbekistan’s Kumushkhon Khodjaeva, who took bronze in Hangzhou before moving up to silver at Paris 2024. The two have already met on the biggest stages, with Hirose defeating Khodjaeva in the Paris final. China will rest their hopes on Yijie Shi who arrives with a lot of confidence after her gold medal at Paris 2024, making her one of the leading names in the division heading into Aichi-Nagoya. She will aim to defend her women’s -57kg J1 title in Nagoya.
Uzbekistan will also have a familiar name in Sherzod Namozov, who will compete in the men’s -70kg J2 category. Namozov was an Asian Para Games champion in Jakarta in 2018, winning gold in the men’s -60kg category. He then claimed silver in the same category at Hangzhou 2022 before winning Paralympic gold at Paris 2024. He will now move into the -70kg J2 category at Aichi-Nagoya, adding another storyline to an already competitive field.
The Aichi-Nagoya 2026 Para judo competition will bring together several athletes who have already tasted success at the Asian Para Games and Paralympic Games, setting the stage for another competitive contest.
