Thailand’s 694-member team — a blend of Olympic medallists, world champions, former winners and a host of first-timers — will head into the Asian Games Aichi-Nagoya 2026 aiming to put on a better show than they did in Hangzhou, China, three years ago.
The team consist of 356 men and 338 women and will compete in 42 sports from today to Oct 4 at the continental multi-sport event in Japan, which will serve as an important test ahead of the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles.
While mighty China are tipped to dominate both the gold medal and overall tables once again, with hosts Japan their main rivals, Thailand’s realistic target is simply to outperform their Hangzhou campaign, in which the team finished eighth overall with 12 gold, 14 silver and 32 bronze medals.
This time, the Kingdom’s athletes are expected to produce 14 gold medals across nine sports, with sepak takraw carrying the heaviest burden — aiming to win all four of its events: men’s regu, men’s team regu, women’s team regu and women’s quadrant.
Beyond sepak takraw, the teqball team, which boast women’s doubles world champions Suphawadi Wongkamchan and Jutatip Kuntatong, are expected to deliver three golds, while athletics, esports, golf, kurash, ju-jitsu, sailing and taekwondo each target one apiece.
Sports where medals are targeted — though not necessarily gold — such as boxing, badminton, weightlifting, tennis, equestrian and rowing could prove crucial to the country’s overall tally.
As for the immensely popular women’s volleyball team, there are hopes the four-time Asian champions will secure a medal in Aichi-Nagoya following their historic first-ever Olympic qualification last month.
The team have never won Asian Games gold, with silver at Jakarta-Palembang 2018 their best finish to date, and fans are now dreaming of a breakthrough. The chances look reasonably good with the team riding high on confidence after their victory in Tianjin, though success will also hinge on momentum and luck during the competition.
In Thailand’s other most popular sport, football, the men’s team has set a target of reaching at least the quarter-finals, while the women’s side is focused on performance and improvement.
The men’s campaign is complicated by scheduling clashes with other tournaments, which have prevented the squad from being at full strength and forced the inclusion of several rising stars.
Star power to watch
Although the Thai contingent for Aichi-Nagoya 2026 is smaller than at the previous Games, the squad remains packed with top-tier athletes.
Leading the charge are Kunlavut Vitidsarn, the world No.3 men’s singles badminton player and a 2024 Olympic silver medallist; Puripol Boonson, the sprint sensation who made history by clocking a sub-10-second 100m dash; and Banlung Tubtimdang, a taekwondo world champion and defending Asian Games gold medallist.
Former world champion Kunlavut has never won an Asian Games medal, and the 25-year-old leads a star-studded Thai badminton team that also include fellow ex-world champion Ratchanok Intanon, who will compete in her final Asian Games, and Pornpawee Chochuwong, a recent bronze medallist at the World Championships.
There is also good news on Dechapol Puavaranukroh: the knee injury he picked up at last month’s World Championships was not severe, and the mixed doubles star is now in rehabilitation, aiming to be fit in time to partner Supissara Paewsampran in Nagoya.
Three years after taking silver in Hangzhou, Puripol returns to the Asian Games in prime condition and with a shot at becoming Thailand’s first 100m gold medallist since Suchart Jairsuraparp at the 1978 Games in Bangkok.
The 20-year-old became the first Southeast Asian man to break the 10-second barrier at last year’s 33rd SEA Games, and arrives in Aichi-Nagoya in strong form after a string of quick times against tough international fields during a training stint in Europe.
Banlung, meanwhile, remains Thai- land’s biggest hope for a taekwondo gold, despite moving up to a new weight class and adapting to changes in the sport’s rules. He is joined by young Patcharakan Poolkerd, who competes in the 49kg division — a category long dominated by two-time Olympic champion Panipak Wongpattanakit, who retired after Paris 2024.
Golfer Arpichaya Yubol returns to the Asian Games aiming to defend both her individual and team titles. Since her victorious Hangzhou campaign, she has gained further world-class experience on the LPGA Tour and has posted two runner-up finishes this year.
In boxing, 2024 Olympic bronze medallist Janjaem Suwannapheng, who won silver in Hangzhou, is a leading contender for gold. She is one of 11 Thai fighters — six men and five women — competing in Nagoya.
The weightlifting team consists of 10 athletes — five men and five women — including three Olympic medallists: Weeraphon Wichuma, Theerapong Silachai and Surodchana Khambao. The team has trained primarily in Chiang Mai and is confident of securing around two to three medals, with China and Indonesia identified as the key rivals.
Men’s sepak takraw coach Pornchai Kaokaew said the team has learned lessons from its shock losses to Malaysia and Vietnam at last year’s 33rd SEA Games, and is targeting gold in both the men’s regu and men’s team regu events.
The women’s team, in training camp since April, is targeting gold in the team regu and quadrant events, though they acknowledge Vietnam as their major rivals — particularly in the quadrant.