NAGOYA: Iranian women won their country’s first rowing and taekwondo golds at the 2026 Asian Games in Japan, alongside breakthrough medals in weightlifting and running.
Fatemeh Mojallal won the lightweight single sculls on September 24. About 20 minutes later, Kimia Zarei and Zeinab Norouzi secured the lightweight double sculls title.
Mojallal also earned bronze in single sculls, while Zarei and Norouzi added silver in double sculls. Mahsa Javer, Soha Fakhri, Saghi Maleki and Hengameh Kamyab won silver in quadruple sculls.
Before the Games, war disrupted the rowers’ preparations. Zarei told the Olympic Council of Asia that the team trained at home on rowing machines for about 50 days after officials cancelled their camp.
They later resumed training together despite the continuing conflict. “We risked our lives because we wanted this moment,” she said. Meanwhile, Zahra Zarei took silver in the women’s 400 metres in 52.38 seconds.
She became Iran’s first female Asian Games medalist in a running event. In weightlifting, Reihaneh Karimi, 20, earned bronze in the 77kg category with a combined lift of 243kg.
Iran had never previously won a women’s weightlifting medal at the Games. Two days later, Mahsa Beheshti, 17, added bronze in the 86kg category.
Read: Iran Asian Games Medals Reach 39 After Day 11 in Nagoya
Saghar Moradi Sheikhlari, 19, won the women’s under-67kg taekwondo title on Friday. Fatemeh Ahmadi followed with bronze in the over-67kg category on Saturday.
Beyond the podium, Hengameh Hadiyani, 20, became the first Iranian woman to compete in Asian Games artistic gymnastics since the 1979 revolution. Wearing a full-body outfit that complied with Iran’s dress rules, she placed 13th in vault qualification.
Meshkatolzahra Safi and Mandegar Farzami also became Iran’s first women to win Asian Games tennis singles matches. In kabaddi, Iran lost the women’s final 37-34 to India but extended its medal streak to five consecutive Games.
Read: Saghar Moradi Gold Caps Flawless -67kg Run in Taiyuan
Fatemeh-Zahra Saeidabadi earned karate silver in the under-55kg category, while Fatemeh Sadeghi, Sepideh Amini and Zeinab Hosseini took team kata silver.
Fatemeh Barmaki won kurash bronze. Hanieh Rostamian and Vahid Golkhandan secured bronze in mixed team shooting.
