Turkmen Athletes Begin Competition at the 2026 Asian Games in Nagoya
The Turkmenistan team has begun competing at the 20th Summer Asian Games in Nagoya, Japan. Approximately 10,800 athletes from 45 countries are participating in the continent's largest sporting event, vying for 469 sets of medals across 43 sports.
Mukhammet Jumamyradov, a Candidate for Master of Sports in Wushu, carried the flag of Turkmenistan during the opening ceremony at Paloma Mizuho Stadium. The national delegation comprises 57 members in total, with 34 athletes representing the country in eight disciplines: boxing, wrestling, karate, kurash, athletics, swimming, weightlifting, and wushu.
The initial events brought the national athletes both decisive victories and challenging contests:
Wushu-Sanda: Merjen Jorayeva (under 60 kg) confidently qualified for the quarterfinals, securing a clean 2–0 victory over Nepal’s Rita Takulla.
Karate: Rayan Gurbanmyradov (under 60 kg) opened with a commanding 6–1 win over the Philippines' John Christian Lachica but lost to a Malaysian opponent in the quarterfinals.
Swimming: 15-year-old Alan Mukhin won his 50m freestyle qualifying heat with a time of 23.91 seconds (ranking 29th overall). David Akopyan also finished first in his 100m breaststroke heat (1:04.72; 26th place in the final standings).
Boxing: Bayramdurdy Nurmuhammedov (under 70 kg), a bronze medalist at the previous Asian Games, lost to Ali Abdulla of Bahrain via a split decision (1–4).
The competitions in Nagoya continue until October 4. In the coming days, Turkmen athletes specializing in wrestling, weightlifting, and track and field will join the hunt for medals.
