Bangkok, the vibrant capital of Thailand, is set to host the 2026 edition of the Para Powerlifting Asia-Oceania Open Championships from 7 to 12 April. The country’s capital will stage five days of individual events before team competition takes centre stage on 12 April.
It will be the first time Bangkok has hosted an international Para powerlifting event in five years, following the 2021 World Cup. However, Thailand has more recently hosted the 2024 World Cup in Pattaya ahead of the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games.
There are 19 Asian National Paralympic Committees (NPCs) participating in Bangkok, together with four from outside the region: El Salvador, Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico and Venezuela.
Uzbekistan will be the largest NPC at the Asia-Oceania Open Championships, entering 37 athletes in total. India follow with 29, Kazakhstan are third with 28, while China (24) and hosts Thailand (23) round out the top five.
In total, 249 athletes will compete, 102 women and 147 men, with Uzbekistan again leading the way in both categories with 15 female and 22 male athletes.
Of Thailand’s 23-strong squad, the biggest hopes rest with Paris 2024 Paralympic bronze medallist Kamolpan Kraratpet. She will compete on the second day of competition (8 April) in the women’s up to 55kg category and is the favourite for gold.
China’s golden ambitions
China’s finest powerlifters Zhe Cui and Lingling Guo are expected to maintain their dominance in the women’s up to 41kg and 45kg categories, where they both hold the Paralympic and world titles.
🔥 China’s Lingling Guo sets a new world record with a 125kg lift in the women’s up to 45kg! 💪🏆
She improves her own mark by 1kg and remains among the elite trio with WRs in 2 classes! 🇨🇳👏
📸 @Hiroki_Nishioka / WPPO#Cairo2025 #ParaPowerlifting pic.twitter.com/lz8beFbOtU
— Para Powerlifting (@Powerlifting) October 14, 2025
A standout contest is anticipated in the women’s up to 73kg category, where three-time Paralympic champion Tan Yujiao of China leads the field. Although she switched categories after the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games, the 35-year-old claimed gold at the Cairo 2025 Para Powerlifting World Championships with a 146kg lift on her second attempt.
Also set to feature in the category is Uzbekistan’s Ruza Kuzieva, the Paralympic silver medallist from Paris. Having missed the Cairo World Championships following the birth of her second child, she returns to competition more than a year and a half after her medal-winning performance at the Paralympic Games.
China will also be favoured for gold in the three heavyweight categories. Miaoyu Han, the reigning Paralympic champion and silver medallist from Cairo, will be aiming for the top of the podium after losing out to first-time World Championships competitor Rita Ferdinand of Nigeria in Egypt six months ago in the women’s up to 79kg category.
In the two remaining heavyweight categories, Feifei Zheng, the reigning world champion, and Wenjun Zhu, the silver medallist from Cairo, will be looking to secure further gold medals for China in the women’s up to 86kg and over 86kg categories.
Gustin headlines a packed men’s field
On the men’s side of the competition, Malaysia’s world record holder and two-time Paralympic champion Bonnie Bunyau Gustin is set to be one of the most closely watched competitors. The 26-year-old will change categories for the first time, moving from the men’s up to 72kg to the men’s up to 80kg.
He is THE man ✨
Malaysia’s Bonnie Gustin wins his fourth consecutive world title in the men’s up to 72kg category with a 230kg lift.
No one’s stealing his crown anytime soon. 👑🇲🇾 #ParaPowerlifting #Cairo2025 pic.twitter.com/d68x0cIrxr
— Para Powerlifting (@Powerlifting) October 13, 2025
Three more reigning Paralympic champions will be in action in Bangkok: Kazakhstan’s David Degtyarev in the men’s up to 54kg category, and two of China’s finest, Yi Zou and Panpan Yan, in the men’s up to 65kg and men’s up to 88kg categories respectively.
After a setback in Cairo where he finished ninth, Zou faces a stern test in Bangkok as he battles compatriot and current world champion Shiwei Zhou for gold.
While no further reigning Paralympic champions feature in the remaining bodyweight categories, there is still plenty to look forward to.
Vietnam’s accomplished Le Van Cong, a three-time Paralympic medallist, will headline the men’s up to 49kg category, while China’s Yongkai Qi will be looking to finally claim gold after finishing third in Cairo and second in Paris in the men’s up to 59kg.
Qi’s compatriot Pingkang Zhang, the silver medallist from Cairo in the men’s up to 72kg category, has become the clear favourite for gold following Bonnie Gustin’s move to a higher bodyweight category.
Further gold medal opportunities await China in the men’s up to 80kg and 97kg categories. Xiaofei Gu, the reigning world champion and silver medallist from Paris, will aim to leave nothing to chance, while Jixiong Ye will look to build on his silver medal from the Paralympic Games.
First elite champion crowned at #Cairo2025 👑
Gu Xiaofei 🇨🇳 grabs his third world title in the men’s up to 80kg with a 223kg lift. #ParaPowerlifting pic.twitter.com/4NxGv2988p
— Para Powerlifting (@Powerlifting) October 11, 2025
In the heavyweight categories, there is one clear favourite: Sodnompiljee Enkhbayar of Mongolia. The three-time Paralympic medallist will be looking to top the results table in the absence of reigning world and Paralympic champion Aliakbar Gharibshahi in the men’s up to 107kg category.
Two further names to watch will be competing at the Open Championships from outside the Asian region. Venezuela’s Clara Fuentes Monasterio of enters the women’s up to 50kg as the reigning world and Paralympic champion, while Herbert Aceituno of El Salvador will look to maintain his fine form after taking silver in Cairo. He competes in the men’s up to 54kg category alongside David Degtyarev.
All eyes on the team finale
The competition concludes with all three team events on 12 April. There are 14 teams on the entry list for the women’s team event, 15 for the men’s team event and 22 for the mixed team event, with a marathon session spanning 11 hours and 40 minutes of competition scheduled.
Live results for Bangkok 2026 Asia-Oceania Open Championships will be available on the link, while the live streaming will be provided through the Paralympic Games YouTube channel.
