The Aporia · Yuki Kurihara, Japan’s 11-year-old e-sports prodigy, wins Asian Games gold

Yuki Kurihara, a 11-year-old from Japan, won gold at the Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya by defeating opponents up to three times his age in Puyo Puyo Champions, a puzzle game where players clear screens of colored blobs. Despite feeling embarrassed and not showing much emotion during his victory over South Korea’s Kang Dongshin, Kurihara expressed happiness upon receiving his gold medal. He began competing professionally at the young age of six and now holds the record as Japan's youngest Asian Games athlete in history.

Written by AI on 2026-09-26, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

Story summary

11-year-old Japanese player Yuki Kurihara made history by winning a gold medal at the Asian Games in Puyo Puyo Champions, an e-sports event similar to Tetris. He defeated South Korea's Kang Dongshin 10-2 in the final on Saturday. Prior to this match, he had already beaten Thailand’s Tanarak Wongkitkun 10-1 and other opponents almost three times his age during group stage matches. Kurihara trains eight hours daily while maintaining good school grades. He has been competing since kindergarten and eats eel for training. With this victory, Kurihara is believed to be the youngest gold medalist in Asian Games history, surpassing Indonesia's Bunga Nyimas who won bronze at age 12 in 2018.

Written for “Eel Prodigy Wins Esports Gold” on 2026-11-02, grounded in this article and the 3 other(s) covering the same event.

📰 Eel Prodigy Wins Esports Gold

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This article reads unscored and hedges 0% of its claims. Each row says how that neighbour differs.

The eel-powered 11-year-old making history Same event

BBC News

Hedges 1 of 16 claims Outlet record 68/100

11-year-old Japanese player Yuki Kurihara wins esports gold medal at the Asian Games Same event

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Hedges 0 of 17 claims Outlet record 64/100

11-year-old esports prodigy wins gold and rival’s praise at the Asian Games Same event

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Hedges 0 of 13 claims Outlet record 59/100

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Japan’s 11-year-old e-sports prodigy Yuki Kurihara said he was “embarrassed” after winning Asian Games gold on Saturday by thrashing a series of opponents up to three times his age.

framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-09-26

🔮 “To be completely honest, I felt a bit embarrassed, so I couldn’t really show my expressions or change my face much,” he explained.

2026-09-26 · Al Jazeera

Yuki Kurihara, Japan’s 11-year-old e-sports prodigy, wins Asian Games gold · assertive framing

Japan’s 11-year-old e-sports prodigy Yuki Kurihara said he was “embarrassed” after winning Asian Games gold on Saturday by thrashing a series of opponents up to three times his age. asserted

he → say → opponents

The bespectacled primary school student, believed to be the youngest competitor at the games in Aichi-Nagoya, won the Puyo Puyo Champions final 10-2. asserted

student → believe → final

Recommended Stories list of 3 items- list 1 of 3Man City found guilty on almost all 115 Premier League charges: asserted

City → find → charges

Puyo Puyo Champions is a puzzle game where players try to clear their screen of coloured blobs by lining them up and popping them. asserted

players → try → them

Looking unruffled throughout, Kurihara waltzed into the gold medal match with a string of dazzling displays. asserted

Kurihara → look → displays

He crushed Thailand’s Tanarak Wongkitkun – a relative veteran at 28 – 10-1 in the semifinals to ensure at least a silver medal. asserted

He → crush → medal

He did not even smile after beating South Korea’s 24-year-old Kang Dongshin in the final, having gone down 1-0 early on. asserted

He → smile → final

“To be completely honest, I felt a bit embarrassed, so I couldn’t really show my expressions or change my face much,” he explained. asserted

he → feel → face

Standing on the podium, he bowed slightly as he received his gold medal and gave a small wave to the arena. asserted

he → stand → arena

“I’m really happy. asserted

I → ’m → ?

The gold medal is really beautiful, shiny and heavy,” he said. asserted

he → say → ?

“Also, the plush toy is super cute, and it’s cool that it is gold-coloured too.” asserted

it → ’ → ?

Kurihara started playing Puyo Puyo in his first year of primary school and soon started competing and winning in tournaments. asserted

Kurihara → start → tournaments

He obtained his pro licence in April this year and regularly beats adults. asserted

He → obtain → adults

“It’s hard having to balance it with school and cram school, but it’s really fun,” he said ahead of the games. asserted

he → ’ → games

There are no publicly available records of the youngest medallists in the history of the Asian Games, which were first contested in 1951. asserted

which → be → 1951

But Indonesia’s Bunga Nyimas won bronze in women’s skateboarding aged 12 in Jakarta in 2018. asserted

Nyimas → win → 2018

Cui Chenxi, 13, won games gold when she triumphed in the women’s street skateboarding event three years ago in Hangzhou. asserted

she → win → Hangzhou

Yuki Kurihara, Japan’s 11-year-old e-sports prodigy, wins Asian Games gold

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