Sulaiman Abdulrahman wins UAE’s first athletics medal at 2026 Asian Games

Emirati sprinter Sulaiman Abdulrahman has won the UAE’s first athletics medal at the 2026 Asian Games, taking silver in the men’s 400 metres after one of the strongest performances of his young career.

The 19-year-old crossed the line in 44.99 seconds in Aichi-Nagoya, finishing just 0.09 seconds behind Thailand’s Joshua Atkinson, who claimed gold in 44.90.

Abdulrahman’s result gave the UAE its first athletics medal of the Games and underlined his rapid rise as one of the country’s most promising young track athletes.

Silver by the narrowest margin

The 400m final was decided by less than a tenth of a second.

Abdulrahman produced a powerful run but was narrowly beaten by Atkinson in the closing stages, leaving the Emirati teenager with silver.

UAE teammate Emmanuel Bamidele also reached the final, finishing seventh in 45.97 seconds.

For Abdulrahman, the medal represents another major achievement in a year in which he has already established himself among Asia’s leading young sprinters.

A breakthrough year for the 19-year-old

Earlier in 2026, Abdulrahman won gold in the 400m at the Asian U20 Athletics Championships in Hong Kong.

His winning time of 44.85 seconds set a championship record and made him the first athlete in the event’s history to break the 45-second barrier.

That performance placed him firmly among the continent’s emerging sprint talents.

Now, despite still competing at under-20 level, he has stepped onto the senior Asian Games podium against some of the region’s strongest athletes.

‘This silver feels like gold’

Major General Dr Mohammed Abdullah Al Murr, president of the UAE Athletics Federation, described the result as an important moment for Emirati athletics.

He said the narrow gap to first place and the quality of the field made the silver medal particularly significant.

For the federation, Abdulrahman’s success is also seen as evidence that long-term investment in young athletes is beginning to produce results at continental level.

His age makes the achievement even more notable, with the sprinter potentially still years away from reaching his athletic peak.

UAE’s young athletes continue to progress

The UAE has placed increasing emphasis on developing younger athletes capable of competing internationally.

Abdulrahman’s performances this season have become a strong example of that strategy.

Breaking the 45-second barrier as a teenager and then finishing within 0.09 seconds of Asian Games gold places him among the most exciting names in the country’s athletics programme.

The federation now hopes his progress will encourage a new generation of Emirati athletes to pursue elite competition.

Strong UAE showing in dressage

The UAE also recorded a notable achievement in equestrian sport at the Games.

Ali Khalfan Al Jahouri and Bianca Schutz became the first two UAE riders to qualify for the individual freestyle dressage final at the same Asian Games.

Al Jahouri, riding Lotus-S, recorded an aggregate qualifying score of 132.736, while Schutz and Le Grand Ayden HB finished on 132.706.

In the final, Schutz placed 12th and Al Jahouri 13th.

The results added another positive chapter to the UAE’s campaign in Japan.

A new name for UAE athletics

For Sulaiman Abdulrahman, however, the silver medal is likely to be remembered as a defining moment.

At only 19, he has already won an Asian U20 title, broken a major championship barrier and reached the podium at the Asian Games.

And with just nine hundredths of a second separating him from gold, the UAE’s newest athletics star has shown that he is already capable of competing with the best in Asia.