NAGOYA, Sept 28 — The Malaysian contingent has achieved its six-gold target at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games after national squash players Ng Eain Yow and Sivasangari Subramaniam defended their men’s and women’s singles titles respectively yesterday.
The double delight completed the gold-medal target set by the national contingent before the Games, providing a fitting finale to Malaysia’s ninth day of competition at the quadrennial sporting event.
However, the limelight yesterday was not only on squash, as several other sports also recorded positive developments, including diving, which contributed two medals to the national contingent.
The pairing of Enrique Harrold-Elvis Priestly won silver in the men’s synchronised 10-metre (m) platform with 377.52 points at the Tokyo Aquatics Centre, while Ong Ker Ying-Lee Yiat Qing added bronze in the women’s synchronised 3m springboard with 243.72 points.
Yong Rui Jie-Nurqayyum Nazmi Mohd Nazim also won bronze in the men’s synchronised 3m springboard a day earlier.
In athletics, Danish Iftikhar Muhammad Roslee finished sixth in the men’s 200m final in 20.89 seconds, recording a season-best time.
The 19-year-old sprinter had earlier made history by becoming the first Malaysian in 44 years to qualify for the Asian Games final in the event.
In badminton, Pearly Tan-M. Thinaah assured Malaysia of at least a bronze medal after storming into the women’s doubles semi-finals, ending the country’s 12-year wait to return to the podium in the event.
However, Goh Sze Fei-Nur Izzuddin Mohd Rumsani crashed out in the men’s doubles quarter-finals.
With the six-gold target now achieved, Malaysia athletes will shift their focus to increasing the overall medal tally in the remaining competitions before the Games end on October 4.
