North Korea's Il Sim Son Ends Japan's Akari Fujinami's Unbeaten Streak at Asian Games

Akari Fujinami’s remarkable nine-year unbeaten run in wrestling has come to an end after the Japanese star was defeated by North Korea’s Il Sim Son at the 2026 Asian Games. Fujinami had not lost a professional match since 2017, but Son ended that extraordinary streak with a victory that marked one of the biggest upsets of the competition.

Fujinami’s previous defeat came when she was just 13 years old, in the final of the National Junior High School Championship in 2017. The loss left a lasting impression on the young wrestler, who later recalled to United World Wrestling that she went to a toilet after the match and cried by herself.

That defeat, however, became an important turning point in Fujinami’s career. She responded by building an extraordinary record and established herself as one of Japan’s leading wrestlers. Over the following nine years, she remained unbeaten in professional competition, turning the streak into one of the defining features of her career.

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The run finally ended at the Asian Games when Fujinami faced Son. The North Korean wrestler managed to pin the Japanese favourite, bringing an end to a winning sequence that had lasted from her teenage years into her senior career.

The result also highlighted the unpredictable nature of wrestling at a major international event, where even an athlete carrying a lengthy unbeaten record can face a decisive challenge. For Fujinami, the defeat was a sharp contrast to the sustained success she had enjoyed since her last loss as a schoolgirl.

Fujinami’s nine-year streak will now remain a notable chapter of her career, while Son’s victory gives North Korea a major result at the Asian Games. The defeat also brings a remarkable competitive run to a close, nearly a decade after Fujinami began rebuilding her career following that emotional loss in 2017.

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