RIYADH: Almost 11,000 athletes from across the continent will take part in the 20th Asian Games, which kicks off in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan on Saturday and runs until Oct. 4.

Some team events, including basketball and football started earlier.

Saudi Arabia will field about 140 athletes in 19 different sports: athletics, basketball, boxing, equestrian, esports, fencing, football, jiujitsu, judo, karate, mixed martial arts, padel, shooting, squash, swimming, taekwondo, tennis, weightlifting and wrestling.

Team Saudi scooped 10 medals (four gold, two silver, four bronze) at the last Games in Hangzhou, China in 2023, half of which came in athletics.

Here are some Saudi athletes to look out for this time around:

Showjumping team (Equestrian)

Three of the four riders that secured gold in the team jumping event in Hangzhou are back: Abdullah Al Sharbatly, Ramzy Al Duhami and Abdulrahman Al Rajhi. Khaled Al Mobty completes the quartet this time around.

Al Sharbatly is also bidding to win a second consecutive gold — and third overall — in individual jumping. The 43-year-old has six Asian Games gold medals and one silver and will be hoping to add to his collection 20 years winning his first in the team jumping event in Doha 2006.

He also helped Saudi Arabia to the team bronze at the London 2012 Olympics and clinched individual silver at the World Championships in 2010.

Al Sharbatly will be riding the 13-year-old mare Diriyah at the JRA Equestrian Park in Tokyo.

The Saudis have topped the podium in team jumping in four of the last five editions of the Asian Games, with the sole exception coming in Incheon 2014, when they took silver behind the Qataris.

It is a winning streak they feel confident they can keep alive in Japan.

Khalifah Al-Omairi (Fencing)

Khalifah Al-Omairi made history in July when he became the first competitor from Saudi Arabia to win a medal at the World Fencing Championships, taking bronze in the individual epee event in Hong Kong.

The 27-year-old stunned reigning Olympic and World champion Koki Kano of Japan in the quarterfinals and secured a historic podium finish that will no doubt serve as a confidence booster for Japan.

Dunya Abutaleb (Taekwondo)

Dunya Abutaleb will be looking to add to her list of unprecedented accomplishments when she represents Saudi Arabia in Japan.

The 29-year-old taekwondo fighter is a true trailblazer. She is the first Saudi woman to qualify for an Olympic Games by merit, claim a World Championship medal (bronze in Guadalajara 2022 and silver in Wuxi 2025), medal at the Islamic Solidarity Games (won gold in Riyadh 2025) and clinch medals at the Asian Taekwondo Championships (bronze in Chuncheon 2022, gold in Da Nang 2024 and silver in Ulaanbaatar 2026).

Abutaleb heads to Japan ranked No. 2 in the world in her discipline and weight class and is one of the country’s best medal hopes.

Malik Basahel (MMA)

Undefeated flyweight Malik Basahel is one of the Kingdom’s top MMA prospects and has already amassed a 4-0 record as a professional in the PFL, including a unanimous decision over Imad El Azami in PFL MENA 10 in July.

The 24-year-old turned heads as an amateur, capturing IMMAF Asian Championship gold and earning silver at the IMMAF World Championships.

He is definitely one to watch in Japan.

Mohamed Daoud Tolo (Athletics)

A silver medallist in the shot put at the Asian Games three years ago, Mohamed Daoud Tolu will be seeking a second podium finish when the action kicks off at Nagoya City Mizuho Park Athletic Stadium.

Tolu’s Asian record of 21.80 meters has stood since June 2024.

He took bronze at the Asian Athletics Championships last year in Korea and claimed gold at the GCC Games in May. His busy 2026 campaign has yielded multiple podium finishes at events across Europe, with his season-best result coming in July at a competition in Germany, where he threw 19.61.

Alanoud Yamani and Areej Fareh (Padel)

Padel will be making its debut at this year’s Asian Games and Saudi Arabia is fielding two teams: Alanoud Yamani partnering Areej Khalil Fareh and Samaher Kurdi partnering Lina Alabdullatif.

Yamani is the captain of the Saudi national padel team, which won silver at this year’s GCC Games. She has a career-high ranking of 188 in the world and will be looking to leave a lasting impression alongside Fareh.

Abdulaziz Atafi (Athletics)

Sprinter Abdulaziz Atafi lowered his personal best time for the 200 meters from 21.45 seconds in 2022 to the current Saudi national record of 20.14 in 2025. Also last year he clinched the silver medal in the event at the Asian Athletics Championships in Gumi, Korea.

Now 24, Atafi took silver in the 200 and bronze in the 100 at the GCC Games in Doha in May and is expected to line up for both events and the 4x100 relay in Japan.