Qatar makes history with first-ever Asian Games padel gold

Rashed Nawaf and Mishari Nawaf made history for Qatar by winning the first-ever Asian Games padel gold at Aichi-Nagoya 2026.Qatar made history at the Aichi-Nagoya 2026 Asian Games on Saturday as Rashed Nawaf and Mishari Nawaf won the first-ever padel gold medal awarded at the continental competition.The Qatari duo defeated Malaysia’s Aiden Yunus and Christian Chen in straight sets, 6-3, 6-1, in the men’s final to become the inaugural Asian Games champions in the sport.The victory capped an unbeaten run for Rashed and Mishari, who did not drop a set throughout the knockout stages on their way to the title.Qatar began its campaign with a straight-sets victory over Kuwait’s Abdulaziz Mayouf and Fouad Behbehani in the round of 16.The pair then overcame the UAE duo of Abdullah Al Abdullah and Fares Al Janahi in two sets in the quarter-finals to secure their place in the last four.They continued their dominant run in the semi-finals, defeating Iran’s Hami Golestan and Arya Roghani in straight sets to set up Saturday’s gold-medal encounter with Malaysia.Rashed and Mishari took control of the final with a 6-3 victory in the opening set before conceding just one game in the second, winning it 6-1 to secure the historic title.Following their victory, Sheikh Joaan bin Hamad Al Thani, President of the Olympic Council of Asia and President of the Qatar Olympic Committee, presented the pair with their gold medals.“The first-ever padel gold medal in Asian Games history belongs to Qatar,” Sheikh Joaan wrote on social media.“Congratulations to Rashed and Mishari Nawaf – another proud achievement for Qatari sport and our champions,” he added.Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad Al Thani, Personal Representative of the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, was also present for Qatar’s historic triumph.The title carries added significance as padel made its debut on the official Asian Games programme at Aichi-Nagoya 2026, making Qatar the first country to claim the continental competition’s gold medal in the sport.The result also added another gold to Qatar’s medal haul in Japan, taking the delegation’s total to 16 medals, including five gold, six silver and five bronze.Qatar’s success in padel came as the country’s athletes continued to collect historic results across the Games, with the tournament set to conclude on Sunday.