Tokito Oda cries after winning Asian Para Games gold on home soil

Tokito Oda was supposed to win. He is world No. 1, has taken all four Grand Slams and owns a Paralympic gold medal. What nobody expected, including Oda himself, was the flood of tears that came right after.

The 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Para Games ran from October 18 to 24. Oda, who plays for Tokai Rika, left with his second straight Asian Para Games singles title.

What happened?

It was a dominant week. In the men's wheelchair tennis singles, Oda won his first-round match, his next one and his semifinal, all 6-0. His opponents did not win a single game.

The final against China's Ji Zhenxu, ranked ninth in the world, was a little closer. Ji took two games in each set. Even so, the power and precision of Oda's shots were in a different class, and he won in straight sets.

As applause rolled on and on after the last point, Oda stabbed his index finger into the air and shouted: "It's the best. I've played tennis in so many countries, but this is number one."

Why did it hit so hard?

Oda was born in Ichinomiya, in Aichi Prefecture, so this was his home turf. Playing there for Japan, he described the Games as a tournament where "miracles piled up."

For a player who had already won everything, that seems to be the point. The home crowd and the hometown setting made this title feel different from the rest, and the tears on court showed it.

What came before?

This is a title streak with some history. Oda won the singles gold at the 2023 Hangzhou Asian Para Games, the first in the run. In September 2024 he beat Britain's Alfie Hewett in the final at the Paris Paralympics, becoming the youngest men's singles champion in Paralympic wheelchair tennis.

Nagoya added a second Asian Para Games crown, this time in front of the people closest to home. By his own account, it was the best tennis atmosphere he has played in.