Asian Games 2026: Day 15 — India’s Golden Finish, China Dominates as South Korea and Japan Shine

 

 The final competition day of the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games produced a spectacular finish, with several of the continent's biggest sporting powers securing important gold medals. China retained its overwhelming supremacy at the top of the medal table, while Japan completed a record-breaking home campaign. South Korea enjoyed major victories in men's football and golf, Iran added another taekwondo gold, and India produced a magnificent late surge to finish fourth overall after winning five gold medals on the final day.

China: China finished the Games as the undisputed leading sporting power in Asia, collecting 169 gold medals and 341 medals overall. One of its notable Day 15 successes came in men's golf, where China won the team competition, ahead of South Korea and Japan. China also had a representative in the women's individual golf podium, with Yin Ruoning finishing behind India's historic champion Pranavi Urs. The Chinese delegation's enormous medal haul once again demonstrated its depth across virtually every major sport, and it finished more than twice ahead of Japan in the gold-medal race.

Japan: Host Japan ended its home Asian Games campaign with a remarkable 83 gold medals and 269 medals overall, a national record. One of the final-day highlights was the inaugural Asian Games women's padel competition, where Kae Tokumoto and Saki Tsukamoto won Japan's first gold medal in the new racket-sport event. Japan also finished with silver in men's golf through Kazuki Higa, while its men's football team settled for silver after losing 0-1 to South Korea. Despite missing out on football gold, Japan's overall performance made Aichi-Nagoya one of its most successful Asian Games ever.

South Korea: South Korea finished third and enjoyed two particularly important victories on the final day. Tom Kim won the men's individual golf gold with an 18-under-par 262 after shooting a final-round 64, securing the gold medal and the associated exemption from compulsory military service. South Korea then defeated host Japan 1-0 in the men's football final, with Eom Ji-sung scoring the decisive goal in the 61st minute. The victory gave South Korea its fourth consecutive Asian Games men's football gold, extending one of the most remarkable dynasties in the competition.

India: India produced one of the most memorable finishes of the entire Games, winning five gold medals on Day 15 and moving above Uzbekistan into fourth place. The day began with Kumkum Mohod winning the women's individual recurve archery gold after defeating South Korea's Oh Yejin 6-5 in a shoot-off, becoming the first Indian woman to win an individual recurve Asian Games gold. Pranavi Urs then created history by becoming the first Indian woman to win an individual Asian Games golf gold, while India's women's golf team added silver. In wrestling, Aman Sehrawat won the men's 57kg freestyle gold by defeating North Korea's Hong Kong Song 11-7. Neeraj Chauhan added a bronze in men's individual recurve, while Antim Panghal won silver in women's 53kg wrestling and Deepak Punia took bronze in men's 97kg freestyle.

India's two biggest team victories came in cricket and hockey. In the men's T20 cricket final, India defeated Pakistan by 19 runs to retain the Asian Games title, with Abhishek Sharma and Tilak Varma producing important half-centuries. Later, the men's hockey team defeated Malaysia 5-1 to successfully defend its Asian Games crown. Captain Harmanpreet Singh scored twice, with Jugraj Singh, Hardik Singh and Shilanand Lakra also finding the net. The hockey triumph gave India its fifth Asian Games men's hockey gold and secured direct qualification for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics. India therefore became the first edition in which both its men's and women's hockey teams won gold at the same Asian Games.

Uzbekistan: Uzbekistan finished fifth despite matching India's gold-medal total of 21, losing fourth place because India accumulated more silver medals. The Central Asian nation had another highly successful Games, particularly in wrestling, boxing and other combat sports. Its final tally of 21 gold, 25 silver and 24 bronze medals gave it 70 medals overall. Although Uzbekistan did not enjoy India's spectacular final-day surge, its consistency throughout the competition ensured another strong finish among Asia's leading sporting nations.

Iran: Iran finished sixth with 19 gold medals and 52 medals overall, continuing its traditional strength in combat sports. One of its most notable final-day victories came through Arian Salimi, who won the men's +80kg taekwondo gold after defeating Uzbekistan's Marat Mavlonov. The Olympic champion's victory added another major title to Iran's proud taekwondo record and helped the country remain ahead of Thailand in the final gold-medal standings.

Overall medals tally: The Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games ended with China firmly at the top with 169 gold, 89 silver and 83 bronze medals — 341 in total. Japan finished second with 83 gold, 95 silver and 91 bronze — 269 medals, while South Korea was third with 39 gold, 43 silver and 68 bronze — 150 medals. India moved into fourth with 21 gold, 27 silver and 37 bronze — 85 medals, edging Uzbekistan, which also won 21 gold but finished with 25 silver and 24 bronze for 70 medals. Iran was sixth with 19 gold, 18 silver and 15 bronze — 52 medals, followed by Thailand with 18 gold, 13 silver and 21 bronze — also 52 medals. India’s final 85-medal haul represented a dramatic late surge, with 11 of its 21 gold medals arriving in the final two days of competition.