The 2026 Asian Games, hosted by Japan across Aichi-Nagoya and surrounding cities, produced a series of milestone gold medals on Friday, October 2, as the continental multi-sport event moved toward its close.
For the Philippines, 22-year-old Jeus Gabriel Derick Yape won the mixed individual virtual taekwondo event, beating Vietnam's Chau Ngoc Tuyet Sang 2-0 in the final at Toyohashi Gymnasium. Virtual taekwondo debuted at these Games: athletes wear virtual reality headsets and motion-tracking sensors to control digital avatars, with health bars and a stun meter similar to a fighting video game. It was the country's first Asian Games taekwondo gold and its fourth of the Games, following gymnast Carlos Yulo and pole vaulter EJ Obiena. The haul matches the Philippines' totals at the 2018 and 2023 editions. Yape had also won bronze in men's individual poomsae the day before.
India celebrated two breakthroughs. Lovlina Borgohain, an Olympic medallist, beat China's Ziyi Bao 5-0 in the 75kg boxing final, ending a 12-year wait for an Indian women's boxing gold at the Asian Games and becoming only the second Indian woman after MC Mary Kom to achieve it. She had lost the final to a Chinese boxer at the previous edition. Earlier, India's women's recurve archery team of Ankita Bhakat, Kirti Sharma and 17-year-old Kumkum Mohod beat 10-time Olympic champions South Korea 5-3 in windy conditions at Okazaki for the country's first Asian Games gold in the event. They had beaten China 5-1 in the semifinals. In sailing, Nethra Kumanan took bronze in the women's dinghy, behind Thailand's Sophia Montgomery and Singapore's Jania Ang. India's women's hockey team was due to face China in the gold-medal match, with qualification for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics also at stake, according to Indian reports.
South Korea also had reason to celebrate. Ha Jee-min won the men's dinghy sailing event at Kaiyoh Yacht Harbor in Gamagori, scoring nine points in the two-race final to finish ahead of Hong Kong's Halliday Nicholas Bezy, with Malaysia's Khairulnizam Mohd Afendy taking bronze. It was Ha's fourth Asian Games gold in the event and South Korea's first in sailing at these Games.
South Korea's football team, meanwhile, prepared for Saturday's men's final against Japan in Toyota, about 40 kilometres east of Nagoya, as it seeks a fourth straight title. Coach Lee Min-sung said he wanted players to stay focused despite a series of logistical problems, including a wrong-venue shuttle drop-off before the opening match and a cancelled training session because of pitch issues. Captain Lee Gi-hyuk, who missed the semifinal with foot inflammation, said he expects to be fit.
The day showed the range of the Games, from traditional disciplines such as archery and boxing to newer esports-style events, with several nations marking first-time or long-awaited successes.