TEHRAN - Iran finished in sixth place at the Aichi-Nagoya 2026 Asian Games, collecting 19 gold, 18 silver and 15 bronze medals, taking its total to 52 medals in the overall standings.

Iran's latest gold came in dramatic fashion on Saturday as the men's volleyball team defeated Japan 3–1 in the final. The victory secured Iran's fourth consecutive Asian Games volleyball title and gave the country its 19th gold medal of the competition. Amin Esmaeilnezhad led Iran with 22 points in the final.

Wrestling has been one of the main sources of Iran's gold medals. Yones Emami won the men's freestyle 74kg title after defeating Japan's Yoshinosuke Aoyagi 9–5 in the final. Emami's victory was Iran's 17th gold medal at the time.

Shortly afterward, Amirali Azarpira added another wrestling gold in the men's 97kg freestyle category. Azarpira dominated Uzbekistan's Sherzod Poyonov 10–0 in the final to claim Iran's 18th gold medal.

Freestylers Mohammad Nokhodi in 86kg and Amirhossein Zare in 125kg had previously won two golds. Also, Alireza Abdeval in 77kg and Amin Mirzazadeh in 130kg had also seized two gold medals in Greco-Roman for the Iranian delegation.

Iran's success has not been limited to wrestling. Arian Salimi won the men's +80kg taekwondo gold medal after defeating Uzbekistan's Marat Mavlonov 2–0 in the final. His victory was Iran's 16th gold of the Games. Saghar Moradi had previously won the women's 67kg taekwondo title, giving Iran another gold in the sport.

Other important Iranian gold medalists in weightlifting include Ali Davoudi, who claimed gold in the men’s 110kg  and Ali Alipour in the men’s 95kg category.

Kurash athlete Majid Vahid Barimanlou won a gold medal in the men’s -66kg.

Iran has also collected medals in climbing, padel, kabaddi, boxing, fencing, gymnastic,canoe spring, shooting, climbing, and 3x3 basketball.

Kimia Zarei and Zeynab Norouzi seized a gold medal in the women's lightweight double sculls as well as a gold medal in women's lightweight singles sculls won by Fatemeh Mojallal. Mohammadreza Tayebi in men’s shot put, Morteza and Mahmoud Nemati in karate, Iran’s Esports, and Soheil Mousavi in wushu snatched also gold medals in the Games.

With 19 gold, 18 silver and 15 bronze medals, Iran's 52-medal haul places it among the leading teams at Aichi-Nagoya 2026. The final standings may still change as the remaining events are completed, but the performances of athletes including Yones Emami, Amirali Azarpira, Arian Salimi, Saghar Moradi, Alireza Abdevali, Ali Davoudi and the men's volleyball team have already made Iran's campaign one of the country's significant Asian Games performances.

At the top of the Asian Games medal table, China, Japan and South Korea occupy the first three positions, earning 169, 83 and 39 gold medals, respectively . China has built its lead through a large number of gold medals across numerous sports, while host nation Japan has also produced a substantial medal haul. South Korea remains among the leading Asian sporting nations.

Japan's strong performance has made the host country one of the central stories of the Games. Its rivalry with China and South Korea has been visible across several disciplines, while Iran has continued to challenge the leading Asian nations in sports such as wrestling, volleyball and taekwondo.

The Iranian men's volleyball team's victory over Japan was particularly significant because it not only delivered another gold medal but also completed an undefeated campaign. Iran defeated Kyrgyzstan, Thailand, Indonesia, South Korea and Pakistan on its way to the final before beating Japan 3–1.

Iran had finished seventh in the previous edition, gaining 13 gold, 21 silver and 20 bronze medals.