Athletes compete at Asian Games Aichi-Nagoya 2026, Japan; LA28 quota spots on offer

20th Asian Games Aichi-Nagoya 2026: Top stars in action, schedule, sports with LA28 qualifying at play - How to watch live

The landmark 20th Asian Games take place this month in Japan, with LA28 Olympic quota spots at play in a number of sports. Find out some of the star names competing at Aichi-Nagoya 2026 and how to watch the action.

Asia’s top athletes will come together this month to celebrate the 20th Asian Games , the continent’s top multi-sport event, at Aichi-Nagoya 2026 in Japan.

Competition will begin as early as 10 September and run through to 4 October , with the event officially starting on 19 September when the Opening Ceremony is due to be held.

More than 15,000 athletes are expected to compete in 469 events in 43 sports , including both Olympic and non-Olympic disciplines. The 2026 Asian Games are also serving as an Olympic qualifier in various sports, with both direct quota spots and indirect ranking points on the line.

The majority of the events will take place in Nagoya City , the capital of Aichi Prefecture , as well as the prefecture itself. Some events will also take place elsewhere in Japan, including swimming , diving, and equestrian in Tokyo, and track cycling in Izu, utilising their respective Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 venues.

But who are some of the stars to watch?

Stars set to shine at 20th Asian Games Aichi-Nagoya 2026

People’s Republic of China , hosts Japan , and the Republic of Korea are the three traditional powerhouses at the Asian Games. Those three National Olympic Committees have won the most gold medals between them at every single Asian Games since 1978, with 1974 the last time one of those three NOCs did not win at least the third-most gold medals at the Games.

Among the Chinese athletes at Aichi-Nagoya 2026 will be the two-time Olympic champion and six-time world champion artistic gymnast Zou Jingyuan and 2021 all-around world champion teammate Zhang Boheng , who is also defending all-around champion; the teenage swimming sensation Yu Zidi ; diver Wang Zongyuan ; swimming world record holder Pan Zhanle ; and current table tennis world no.1 paddlers Wang Chuqin and Sun Yingsha .

Meanwhile, Japan can count on former women’s world no.1 and three-time world champion badminton star Yamaguchi Akane , while triple Olympic champion and the reigning world all-around champion Hashimoto Daiki leads a strong men’s artistic gymnastics team which also includes the current Olympic all-around title holder Oka Shinnosuke . Surfer Kanoa Igarashi , the silver medallist from Tokyo 2020 in 2021, will also be in action on home waves.

The Republic of Korea will have world and Olympic champion badminton star An Seyoung among its delegation’s big names, plus a stellar men’s baseball line-up drawn from the KBO League, including a number of players who featured earlier this year at the 2026 World Baseball Classic. Unsurprisingly, there are also high hopes on the Republic of Korea esports team, which includes “Faker”, Lee Sanghyeok .

Lovlina Borgohain , the 2023 women’s middleweight boxing world champion and a Tokyo 2020 bronze medallist, is among the key names for India as she looks to improve her 2023 Asian Games silver to a gold. India have named strong T20 cricket teams led by Shreyas Iyer and Harmanpreet Kaur and will need only three wins to take home the titles, with both men’s and women’s sides starting in the quarter-finals. Their hockey teams will also be favourites in those events.

Elsewhere, Singapore’s 2021 badminton world champion Loh Kean Yew and reigning Asian Games women’s 200m athletics champion Veronica Shanti Pereira will be back for another tilt at the continental games. However, for Malaysia, there is no room for Lee Zii Jia in their badminton squad, with women’s doubles pair Pearly Tan and Thinaah Muralitharan being the biggest names.

And the Philippines can count on gymnastics’ Yulo brothers Carlos and Karl Eldrew , pole vaulter EJ Obiena , and tennis superstar Alexandra Eala to lead the way.

LA28 qualification picture at the Asian Games 2026

Aichi-Nagoya 2026 is also serving as a direct Olympic qualifier for Los Angeles 2028 in a number of sports.

Quota spots will be secured by National Olympic Committees based on their athletes’ results in archery , hockey, squash , surfing , tennis, and triathlon .

Additionally, the Asian Games also serve as an indirect qualifier in cricket, judo , skateboarding , triathlon, and weightlifting , with results in Aichi-Nagoya counting towards those sports’ respective ranking pathways.

As National Olympic Committees have the exclusive authority for the representation of their respective teams at the Olympic Games, athletes’ participation at the LA Games depends on their NOC selecting them to represent their delegation at LA28.

Schedule of the 20th Asian Games 2026 and sport-by-sport venues

Information is correct as of 28 August 2026 and subject to further changes.

Ceremonies : 19 September and 4 October; Paloma Mizuho Stadium, Nagoya

Aquatics - Water polo : 20 September–3 October; Nagoya City General Gymnasium [Rainbow Pool], Nagoya

Archery : 26 September–3 October; Okazaki Chuo Sogo Park Multipurpose Square, Okazaki

Athletics : 23–29 September; Nagoya City Mizuho Park Athletic Stadium, Nagoya, and Aichi Prefectural Government and Nagoya City Halls Loop Course, Nagoya

Badminton : 20–29 September; Ichinomiya City Municipal Gymnasium, Ichinomiya

softball - Baseball : 21–27 September; Okazaki Chuo Sogo Park Baseball Stadium, Okazaki, and Toyohashi Municipal Baseball Stadium, Toyohashi

softball - Softball : 26 September–3 October; Anjo Softball Ground, Anjo

Basketball - Basketball : 10–26 September; Aichi International Arena, Nagoya

Basketball - 3X3 Basketball : 21–25 September; Kinjo Futo Station Square Venue, Nagoya

Boxing : 21 September–2 October; Nishio Gymnasium, Nishio

Breaking : 2–3 October; Aichi Sky Expo, Tokoname

Paddlesport - Canoe sprint : 23–26 September; Miyoshi Lake Canoe Course, Miyoshi

Paddlesport - Canoe slalom : 29 September–2 October; Yahagigawa Canoe Slalom Course, Toyota

Combat sports - Jiu-jitsu : 1–3 October; Aichi Prefectural Martial Arts Hall, Nagoya

Combat sports - Kurash : 27–29 September; Aichi Prefectural Martial Arts Hall, Nagoya

Combat sports - Mixed Martial Arts : 20–22 September; Nagoya City Inae Sports Center, Nagoya

Cricket (T20) : 17 September–3 October; Korogi Athletic Park, Nisshin

Cycling - Road : 20–23 September; Shinshiro Cycling Road Course, Shinshiro

Cycling - Mountain Bike : 24–25 September; Obata Ryokuchi Park, Nagoya

Cycling - BMX Racing : 28 September; Nagoya Velodrome BMX Race Course, Nagoya

Cycling - BMX Freestyle : 26–27 September; Aichi Sky Expo, Tokoname

Esports : 23 September–2 October; Aichi Sky Expo, Tokoname

Fencing : 22–27 September; Aichi Sky Expo, Tokoname

Golf : 30 September–3 October; Kasugai Country Club East Course, Kasugai

Gymnastics - Artistic : 21–25 September; Nagoya City General Gymnasium [Rainbow Hall], Nagoya

Gymnastics - Rhythmic : 1–3 October; Nagoya City General Gymnasium [Rainbow Hall], Nagoya

Gymnastics - Trampoline : 27 September; Nagoya City General Gymnasium [Rainbow Hall], Nagoya

Handball : 19–29 September; Kasugai City Gymnasium, Kasugai, and ENTRIO, Inazawa

Judo : 30 September–3 October; Aichi International Arena, Nagoya

Kabaddi : 21–26 September; Tokai Citizen Gymnasium, Tokai

Karate : 20–23 September; Toyohashi Gymnasium, Toyohashi

Modern Pentathlon : 16–20 September; Anjo Sports Park, Anjo

Padel : 28 September–3 October; Nagoya City Higashi Sports Center, Nagoya

Rowing : 20–24 September; Nagaragawa International Regatta Course, Aisai

Rugby sevens : 1–3 October; Nagoya City Mizuho Park Rugby Field, Nagoya

Sailing : 26 September–3 October; Kaiyoh Yacht Harbor, Gamagori

Sepaktakraw : 20 September–3 October; Nagoya City Mizuho Park Gymnasium, Nagoya

Shooting : 20 September–1 October; Aichi Prefectural General Shooting Gallery, Toyota

Skateboarding : 24–27 September; Aichi Sky Expo, Tokoname

Climbing : 29 September–3 October; Nagoya International Exhibition Hall [Portmesse Nagoya], Nagoya

Squash : 23 September–2 October; Nagoya Kinjo-Futo Arena, Nagoya

Surfing : 25–28 September; Pacific Long Beach, Tahara

Table tennis : 20–28 September; Sky Hall Toyota, Toyota

Taekwondo : 1–3 October; Toyohashi Gymnasium, Toyohashi

Tennis - Tennis : 27 September–3 October; Nagoya City Higashiyama Park Tennis Center, Nagoya

Tennis - Soft Tennis : 18–23 September; Nagoya City Higashiyama Park Tennis Center, Nagoya

Teqball : 17–20 September; Nagoya City Higashi Sports Center, Nagoya

Triathlon : 20–21 September; Gamagori City Triathlon Venue, Gamagori

Volleyball - Volleyball : 16–22 September and 27 September–3 October; Okazaki Chuo Sogo Park Gymnasium, Okazaki, and Park Arena Komaki, Komaki

Volleyball - Beach Volleyball : 20 September–3 October; Hekinan Ryokuchi Beach Court, Hekinan

Weightlifting : 23–29 September; Nagoya City Trade and Industry Center, Nagoya

Wrestling : 30 September–3 October; Nagoya City Inae Sports Center, Nagoya

Wushu : 20–24 September; Aichi Prefectural Martial Arts Hall, Nagoya

Aquatics - Swimming : 20–25 September; Tokyo Aquatics Centre, Tokyo

Aquatics - Diving : 26–30 September; Tokyo Aquatics Centre, Tokyo

Equestrian : 21 September–4 October; Equestrian Park, Tokyo

Aquatics - Artistic Swimming : 26–28 September; “ToBiO” Furuhashi Hironoshin Memorial Hamamatsu Swimming Center, Hamamatsu

Cycling - Track : 29 September–2 October; Izu Velodrome, Izu

Hockey : 18 September–3 October; Gifu Prefectural Green Stadium, Gifu

Football : 14 September–3 October; seven different stadiums

How to watch the 20th Asian Games Aichi-Nagoya 2026 live

The China Media Group-International Media Port (CMG-IMP) is the host broadcaster for the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games, providing the world feed to broadcasters around the world. CMG is also the main broadcaster in China.

Of the sports being contested at Aichi-Nagoya, 28 will be broadcast live.

The various regional, national and local broadcasters include but are not limited to:

Republic of Korea : MBC, SBS, TV Chosun

Check local listings for further information.

The Yomiuri Shimbun via Reuters Connect

19 September - 4 October

Asian Games | Aichi and Nagoya | Japan