11-year-old Yuki Kurihara beat adults to become the youngest Asian Games gold medallist

Most 11 year olds are worrying about school, homework and what game they want to play after class.

Yuki Kurihara has just won an Asian Games gold medal.

The Japanese e-sports sensation became the youngest gold medallist in Asian Games history after winning the Puyo Puyo competition at the Aichi Nagoya Games.

Kurihara was just 11 years and three months old when he stood on top of the podium, according to Inside the Games.

And he did not simply sneak through the competition.

The fifth year primary school student beat opponents who were more than twice his age before defeating South Korea’s 24 year old Kang Dongshin 10-2 in the final.

The Olympic Council of Asia confirmed that the victory made Kurihara the youngest gold medallist across all editions of the Asian Games.

The previous benchmark was held by China’s Cui Chenxi, who was 13 when she won women’s street skateboarding gold at the 2023 Asian Games in Hangzhou.

An 11 year old beating adults

Kurihara went through his group unbeaten before beating Singapore’s 31 year old Justin Koh Mun June 5-0.

He then defeated Thailand’s 28 year old Tanarak Wongkitkun 10-1 in the semi final.

Kang finally gave him an early scare in the gold medal match by taking the opening game.

But Kurihara responded by winning five in a row and eventually completed a convincing 10-2 victory.

Perhaps the most remarkable part is how young he still is.

Kurihara is a fifth grader in primary school and became the youngest athlete ever selected to represent Japan at an Asian Games. He has spoken about wanting to become a train conductor one day.

Puyo Puyo is a puzzle game in which players connect coloured pieces and build combinations to attack their opponent.

Kurihara started playing the game when he was around five and has already become a professional esports player.

The 2026 Asian Games officially came to an end in Aichi Nagoya on Sunday, bringing two weeks of competition to a close. The Asian Games flag was handed over to Qatar, with Doha set to host the next edition in 2030.

There were plenty of extraordinary performances across the Games.

But one of the most remarkable belonged to an 11 year old primary school student who beat adults to win gold.

Before even reaching secondary school, Yuki Kurihara already has an Asian Games gold medal.

And a place in the history books.