Five Malaysian medal hopes to watch in Aichi-Nagoya

KUALA LUMPUR: Of the 352-strong Malaysian contingent at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games, the country is looking to five medal prospects when the continental showpiece begins on Saturday.

Malaysia, competing in 156 events across 30 sports in Japan, are targeting six gold, seven silver and 20 bronze medals.

Among the Malaysian ranks are an Olympic medallist, two defending Asiad champions and a team determined to topple sepak takraw kingpins Thailand.

Here are the five Malaysian medal prospects to watch at the Asian Games

Azizulhasni Awang — Track cycling

At 38, Azizulhasni is still finding new chapters to add to one of Malaysian sports' most remarkable careers.

The Pocket Rocketman appeared headed for retirement after his painful disqualification in the opening round of the keirin at the 2024 Paris Olympics, where he was penalised for passing the derny too early.

Instead, the two-time Olympic medallist chose to rebuild for one more major assignment — Aichi-Nagoya — and showed in July that the old finishing speed had not deserted him.

Azizulhasni won the Commonwealth Games keirin title in Glasgow, an emotional victory which transformed his Asian Games campaign from a farewell appearance into a genuine medal challenge.

The Dungun-born rider had gone eight months without competition after Paris and had already overcome open-heart surgery in 2022 to return to the sport's highest level.

He also knows how to deliver on the Asian Games stage, having won the individual sprint crown at Jakarta-Palembang in 2018.

Azizulhasni will have support from Shah Firdaus Sahrom and a new generation of national riders, but the spotlight will inevitably follow Malaysia's most decorated cyclist.

Gold in Japan would be another answer to those who believed his best days were behind him.

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Tan Cheong Min — Wushu

Cheong Min will carry the Jalur Gemilang at the opening ceremony before attempting to lift Malaysia's gold-medal expectations in the wushu arena.

The 27-year-old is not merely a ceremonial choice. She enters the Games as one of the contingent's strongest prospects after winning the nangun title at the Taolu World Cup in July with 9.746 points.

Cheong Min has unfinished business with the Asian Games.

She collected silver in the women's nanquan-nandao all-round event in Hangzhou three years ago, scoring 19.419 points and finishing behind China's Chen Hui Ying.

Her record since then underlines why an upgrade is possible. The former world champion won the nanquan-nandao combined title at the 2023 World Combat Games and became Asian champion in nandao in 2024.

Wushu is decided by tiny margins, where balance, precision and a clean landing can separate gold from the rest.

That leaves little room for error against China's formidable exponents and the continent's other leading specialists.

Cheong Min has the pedigree and current form to handle that pressure.

As flagbearer, she will also be expected to set the tone for a contingent seeking medals from 13 sports.

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Men's sepak takraw team

Few Malaysian campaigns carry as much rivalry and unfinished business as the men's sepak takraw challenge.

Malaysia took silver behind Thailand in the team regu event at Hangzhou in 2023, extending their wait for an Asian Games team regu crown since Beijing in 1990.

Belief grew at the 2025 Thailand SEA Games, where Malaysia stunned the hosts 2-1 in the final at Nakhon Pathom Gymnasium to claim their first team regu gold since 1991.

The historic victory ended a 34-year drought and proved Malaysia could overcome their fiercest rivals in a major final on Thai soil.

Malaysia were then crowned ISTAF World Cup team regu champions in Kuala Lumpur in May after Thailand withdrew during a controversial final.

That title did not settle the rivalry. Thailand responded by beating Malaysia 2-0 in the King's Cup team regu final in August.

A possible Aichi-Nagoya meeting is therefore compelling. Malaysia have the belief and big-match experience to threaten the traditional powerhouse, but must again finish the job under pressure.

The 12-player squad includes Azlan Alias, Zulkifli Abd Razak, Afifuddin Razali, Aidil Aiman Azwawi and Noraizat Nordin.

Malaysia also won the men's regu gold at Jakarta-Palembang in 2018.

In Japan, the larger prize is to reclaim team regu supremacy and make their renewed rivalry with Thailand one of the Games' defining Malaysian stories.

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S. Sivasangari — Squash

Sivasangari will defend more than an Asian Games title in Aichi-Nagoya.

Victory in the women's singles will also make her one of the first squash players to qualify for the sport's Olympic debut at the 2028 Los Angeles Games.

The world No. 5 is the top seed and the highest-ranked Asian in the draw, making her the clearest addition to any list of Malaysian athletes to watch.

Sivasangari's triumph in Hangzhou was a display of resilience.

Unseeded in the individual competition, she upset higher-ranked opponents before beating Hong Kong's Chan Sin Yuk in the final to secure her second gold of the Games after helping Malaysia win the women's team event.

The title completed a remarkable comeback from a serious road accident in 2022 which left her with head, facial and spinal injuries.

She returns three years later not as an outsider but as the player everyone in Asia will want to beat.

Japan's Satomi Watanabe, Hong Kong's leading players and India's fast-rising Anahat Singh are among the threats in a deeper field.

That status brings a different test. Sivasangari must handle top-seed expectations while navigating singles, team and mixed doubles duties.

If she reproduces her Hangzhou composure, Malaysia could gain both gold and an early Olympic qualifier.

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Ng Eain Yow — Squash

Eain Yow faces the same enticing double prize in the men's singles — retain his Asian Games crown and book a direct place at Los Angeles 2028.

The world No. 18 has been installed as the top seed, ahead of India's Abhay Singh and Pakistan's Noor Zaman, and arrives with a timely reminder of his ability to trouble higher-ranked opposition.

Eain Yow reached the London Classic semi-finals earlier this month after scoring consecutive upsets over Egyptians Aly Abou Eleinen and world No. 12 Youssef Soliman.

It was a timely run against elite opposition before his title defence in Japan.

His Hangzhou success was built on similar fearlessness.

He defeated Qatar's Abdulla Al Tamimi in four games in the semi-finals before overcoming India's Saurav Ghosal in a demanding final to become Malaysia's first Asian Games men's singles champion since Azlan Iskandar in 2010.

Now 28, Eain Yow is no longer chasing a breakthrough. The task is to defend a title with the draw shaped around him and with every opponent aware of what victory would unlock.

Malaysia won three of the five squash gold medals contested in Hangzhou through Eain Yow, Sivasangari and the women's team.

Aichi-Nagoya offers no guarantees, but the two defending champions give the country perhaps its strongest route towards meeting the six-gold target.

For Eain Yow, the opportunity is even bigger than another continental title.

He could leave Japan having protected his place at the top of Asian squash and secured Malaysia an athlete at the historic Olympic debut of the sport in Los Angeles.