{"id":32338,"date":"2026-10-04T11:47:57","date_gmt":"2026-10-04T11:47:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/?p=32338"},"modified":"2026-10-04T11:47:57","modified_gmt":"2026-10-04T11:47:57","slug":"asian-games-2026-mvps-meet-teenage-sensation-yu-zidi-and-sprint-king-puripol-boonson-asian-games-2026-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/?p=32338","title":{"rendered":"Asian Games 2026 MVPs: Meet teenage sensation Yu Zidi and sprint king Puripol Boonson | Asian Games 2026 News"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<div class=\"e9jwa\">\n<div class=\"vdo_embedd\">\n<div class=\"GfdvZ\">\n<section class=\"_bIDB  clearfix id-r-component leadmedia undefined undefined  E9tg9 \" style=\"top:0px\">\n<div class=\"_bIDB\" data-ua-type=\"1\" onclick=\"stpPgtnAndPrvntDefault(event)\">\n<div class=\"ypVvZ\">\n<div class=\"WGttI\"><img src=\"https:\/\/static.toiimg.com\/thumb\/msid-134673861,imgsize-177680,width-400,height-225,resizemode-4\/yu-zidi-and-puripol-boonson.jpg\" alt=\"Asian Games 2026 MVPs: Meet teenage sensation Yu Zidi and sprint king Puripol Boonson\" title=\"Yu Zidi and Puripol Boonson (Reuters\/AP Photo)\" decoding=\"async\" fetchpriority=\"high\"\/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"Ta7d_ img_cptn\"><span title=\"Yu Zidi and Puripol Boonson (Reuters\/AP Photo)\">Yu Zidi and Puripol Boonson (Reuters\/AP Photo)<\/span><\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>The <a href=\"https:\/\/timesofindia.indiatimes.com\/topic\/asian-games\" styleobj=\"[object Object]\" class=\"\" commonstate=\"[object Object]\" frmappuse=\"1\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Asian Games<\/a> have found two new superstars.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"3\"\/>China&#8217;s 13-year-old swimming sensation Yu Zidi and Thailand&#8217;s 20-year-old sprinting powerhouse Puripol Boonson were named the Female and Male Most Valuable Players of the Aichi-Nagoya 2026 Asian Games by the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) on Sunday.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"6\"\/>The pair were rewarded for spectacular campaigns in which they combined multiple gold medals with a string of Asian Games and Asian records, emerging as two of the brightest young stars of the continental showpiece.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"8\"\/><span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"10\"\/>Yu and Boonson will each receive USD 25,000 from the OCA for their performances.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"12\"\/><\/p>\n<p><h2>Yu Zidi: Teen sensation makes history<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"14\"\/>Yu was one of the breakout stars of Aichi-Nagoya, winning three individual gold medals at just 13 years of age and becoming the youngest MVP in Asian Games history.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"18\"\/>Her golden run began in the women&#8217;s 200m butterfly, where she clocked 2:05.08 on September 20 to set a new Games Record.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"20\"\/>A day later, she produced an even more impressive performance in the women&#8217;s 200m individual medley. Her time of 2:06.10 set a new Games Record and lowered the Asian Record.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"22\"\/>Yu completed her hat-trick on September 23, winning the women&#8217;s 400m individual medley in 4:28.56, another Games Record.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"24\"\/>Three events, three golds and four records made the Chinese teenager one of the defining faces of the Games.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"27\"\/><\/p>\n<div data-pos=\"0\" class=\"id-r-component iIpbx undefined  &#10;        \">\n<div><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Asian Games Swimming\" msid=\"134673876\" imgsize=\"10281026\" resizemode=\"4\" width=\"\" title=\"Yu Zidi of China (AP Photo)\" placeholdersrc=\"https:\/\/static.toiimg.com\/photo\/83033472.cms\" offsetvertical=\"0\" placeholdermsid=\"47529300\" type=\"thumb\" class=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/static.toiimg.com\/photo\/imgsize-10281026,msid-134673876\/asian-games-swimming.jpg\" data-api-prerender=\"true\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Yu Zidi of China (AP Photo)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"29\"\/><\/p>\n<p><h2>Boonson: Thailand&#8217;s sprint king<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"31\"\/>If Yu ruled the pool, Boonson owned the track.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"33\"\/>The 20-year-old Thai sprinter stormed to a 100m-200m double, setting four Asian Games Records and equalling an Asian Record during his campaign.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"35\"\/>In the men&#8217;s 100m, Boonson first broke the Games Record with 9.91 seconds in the semifinal before going even faster in the final, clocking 9.90 seconds to claim gold on September 25.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"37\"\/>Two days later, he completed the sprint double in the 200m. His winning time of 19.88 seconds broke his own Games Record of 20.10 seconds and equalled the Asian Record.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"40\"\/>He also added a silver medal in Thailand&#8217;s mixed 4x100m relay, further underlining his impact in Aichi-Nagoya.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"42\"\/><\/p>\n<div data-pos=\"0\" class=\"id-r-component iIpbx undefined  &#10;        \">\n<div><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Asian Games - Aichi-Nagoya 2026\" msid=\"134673942\" imgsize=\"3069464\" resizemode=\"4\" width=\"\" title=\"Thailand's Puripol Boonson celebrates after winning the men's 200m final. (Reuters Photo)\" placeholdersrc=\"https:\/\/static.toiimg.com\/photo\/83033472.cms\" offsetvertical=\"0\" placeholdermsid=\"47529300\" type=\"thumb\" class=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/static.toiimg.com\/photo\/imgsize-3069464,msid-134673942\/asian-games-aichi-nagoya-2026.jpg\" data-api-prerender=\"true\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Thailand&#8217;s Puripol Boonson celebrates after winning the men&#8217;s 200m final. (Reuters Photo)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"44\"\/><\/p>\n<p><h2>Stars with Los Angeles in sight<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"46\"\/>The OCA MVP Awards Panel said the selection was particularly difficult because of the exceptional quality of performances across the Games.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"49\"\/>Tayyab Ikram, chair of the five-member panel, said Yu and Boonson had established themselves as &#8220;Asian sports superstars&#8221; and backed them to achieve even greater success at the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"52\"\/>Their selection places them alongside a distinguished list of previous Asian Games MVPs, including Japan&#8217;s Koji Ito and Kosuke Kitajima, China&#8217;s Lin Dan and Rikako Ikee, and the 2022 winners Qin Haiyang and Zhang Yufei.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"54\"\/>For Yu, still only 13, and Boonson, at 20, Aichi-Nagoya could prove to be only the beginning. The Asian Games gave the continent two spectacular new stars \u2014 and a glimpse of what could lie ahead on the Olympic stage.<\/div>\n<p><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/timesofindia.indiatimes.com\/sports\/asian-games-2026\/asian-games-2026-mvps-meet-teenage-sensation-yu-zidi-and-sprint-king-puripol-boonson\/articleshow\/134673707.cms\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Yu Zidi and Puripol Boonson (Reuters\/AP Photo) The Asian Games have found two new superstars.China&#8217;s 13-year-old swimming sensation Yu Zidi and Thailand&#8217;s 20-year-old sprinting powerhouse Puripol Boonson were named the Female and Male Most Valuable Players of the Aichi-Nagoya 2026 Asian Games by the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) on Sunday.The pair were rewarded for [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":32339,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[31],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-32338","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-31"],"magazineBlocksPostFeaturedMedia":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/yu-zidi-and-puripol-boonson.jpg","medium":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/yu-zidi-and-puripol-boonson.jpg","medium_large":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/yu-zidi-and-puripol-boonson.jpg","large":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/yu-zidi-and-puripol-boonson.jpg","1536x1536":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/yu-zidi-and-puripol-boonson.jpg","2048x2048":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/yu-zidi-and-puripol-boonson.jpg","blogsy-small":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/yu-zidi-and-puripol-boonson.jpg","blogsy-small-tall":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/yu-zidi-and-puripol-boonson.jpg","blogsy-small-square":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/yu-zidi-and-puripol-boonson.jpg","blogsy-small-masonry":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/yu-zidi-and-puripol-boonson.jpg","blogsy-medium":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/yu-zidi-and-puripol-boonson.jpg","blogsy-medium-masonry":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/yu-zidi-and-puripol-boonson.jpg","blogsy-large":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/yu-zidi-and-puripol-boonson.jpg","blogsy-wide":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/yu-zidi-and-puripol-boonson.jpg"},"magazineBlocksPostAuthor":{"name":"admin","avatar":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/8709732a479614e7a8aa24d3eb1b239f30dc6d90c61464ed495001e7a469d856?s=96&d=mm&r=g"},"magazineBlocksPostCommentsNumber":"0","magazineBlocksPostExcerpt":"Yu Zidi and Puripol Boonson (Reuters\/AP Photo) The Asian Games have found two new superstars.China&#8217;s 13-year-old swimming sensation Yu Zidi and Thailand&#8217;s 20-year-old sprinting powerhouse Puripol Boonson were named the Female and Male Most Valuable Players of the Aichi-Nagoya 2026 Asian Games by the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) on Sunday.The pair were rewarded for [&hellip;]","magazineBlocksPostCategories":["\u0b26\u0b47\u0b36 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