Karate exponent Adeola delivers Malaysia’s first gold in her Asian Games debut

Adeola Fay Robert put on a composed and energetic performance to defeat Iran’s Fatemehzahra Saeidabadi 6-4 in the women’s under-55kg kumite final. — Bernama pic

First Published: Tuesday, 22 Sep 2026 5:59 PM MYT

NAGOYA, Sept 22 — Karate exponent Adeola Fay Robert enjoyed a dream Asian Games debut, delivering Malaysia’s first gold medal at the Aichi-Nagoya 2026 Asian Games at Toyohashi Gymnasium today.

The 20-year-old Sabah-born athlete put on a composed and energetic performance to defeat Iran’s Fatemehzahra Saeidabadi 6-4 in the women’s under-55kg kumite final.

Adeola secured her place in the final by defeating Kazakhstan’s Bella Samasheva 5-4 in the semi-finals, following wins over Kuwait’s Asrar Jasem 9-1 and Uzbekistan’s Sevinch Rakhimova 8-7 in the earlier rounds.

The victory continued the athlete’s positive momentum after she won a bronze medal at the 2025 Bangkok SEA Games.

Adeola also ended Malaysia’s wait for a women’s karate gold medal, with the country’s last victory coming from Syakilla Salni at the 2014 Asian Games in Incheon, South Korea.

Adeola admitted that she herself did not expect to go as far as she did in her Asian Games debut, but was determined to give her best without thinking too much about the outcome.

“Honestly, I did not expect to reach the final. I just wanted to do my best and see what the outcome would be,” she said.

She began representing the country in 2024 after her coach, R. Sharmendran, saw her potential to compete at the international level.

“I did not expect 2024 to mark the start of my national squad journey. Coach Sharmendran saw that I had the talent and qualities to compete internationally.

“He brought me in for training first before I went through the selection process, and from that selection, I joined the national squad in December 2024,” she said. — Bernama