Japanese swimmer Kosuke Kitajima won another breaststroke race and a Chinese gymnast claimed the all-around title, maintaining the status quo on Monday at the Asian Games.
Kitajima, who won the 100m and 200m breaststroke double at the Athens Olympics, defended his Asian Games title over 100m on Monday in a time of 1 minute, 1.13 seconds, nearly two seconds outside his Asian record.
World champion Yang Wei won the all-around gymnastics title, extending the winning streak for China in that event to eight Asian Games dating back to 1978.
PHOTO: AFP
"I think it was relatively easy for me, I was in a good mood today," Yang said.
He Ning and Zhou Zhuoru finished first and second in the women's competition to continue China's resurgence in a sport it has traditionally dominated in Asia.
Earlier, Olympic champion weightlifter Pawina Thongsuk bettered the clean-and-jerk world record in the 63kg class set by Russian Svetlana Shimkova by 1kg. Pawina lifted 142kg to improve Shimkova's record of 141kg set at Wladyslawowo, Poland earlier this year.
Li Hongli won gold in the men's 77kg class to give China its eighth of a possible nine weightlifting titles contested so far at the games -- Pawina is the only one outside China to grab gold.
China continued to dominate in the standings, picking up nine more gold medals Monday on the third official day of competition. It has 38 golds, 69 overall and is well on its way to matching its total of 150 golds from 2002.
South Korea's impressive equestrian record continued when it won the team dressage event for the fourth time in the last five games.
Team member Suh Jung-kyun's gold was his sixth at the Asian Games in his career. He had previously won gold medals in 1986 and 1998 -- both team and individual -- and in 2002 (team), making him the most successful rider in the history of the games.
Taiwan stayed on track for a baseball gold medal showdown with Japan. Third baseman Chang Tai-shan and designated hitter Chen Chin-feng hit solo home runs to lead Taiwan to a 4-2 victory over China.
Japan, the World Baseball Classic champion, and Taiwan meet on Thursday in the final round-robin game in the tournament, with the winner to take gold.
"We're relaxed now and not thinking about the game," Taiwan relief pitcher Keng Po-hsuan said of the gold-medal matchup. "But we're good enough to win it all."
Ali Harem won the first medal -- a bronze -- for war-ravaged Iraq in 77kg weightlifting. It was Iraq's first medal at the Asian Games in 20 years.
In the swimming pool the day belonged to Japan as Kosuke Kitajima (men's 100m breaststroke), Yano Yuri (women's 200m butterfly), Ryosuke Irie (men's 200m backstroke) and the men's 4x200m freestyle relay picked up gold.
China's Zhao Jing won the 50m women's backstroke, while Yang Jiegiao took the gold in the 400m women's freestyle.
The final gold medal of the day went to German-born Rafd Almasri, who swims for Syria, who was the surprise winner in the 50m freestyle after defending champion Kim Min-suk had crashed out in the heats.
Off the competition fields, a high-ranking Indian official confirmed that discus thrower Seema Antil failed a doping test conducted by the World Anti-Doping Agency during a team training camp in the leadup to the Asian Games.
Antil, 23, the Commonwealth Games silver medalist, failed a test in Muscat, Oman, and was sent home last week, the official told the press.
The official did not confirm the substance involved or where the sample was sent for validating, but did add that no other Indian athletes had failed tests in Oman.
Antil, who was stripped of her 2000 junior world championships title after testing positive for a banned stimulant, was part of a group of athletes sent to Oman last month to prepare for the Games.
For some, Cristiano Ronaldo remains the essential spearhead for Portugal’s FIFA World Cup bid, while others believe his presence would prevent Roberto Martinez’s strong side from flourishing. The debate around the five-time Ballon d’Or winner rages on, as it did at UEFA Euro 2024 and four years ago in Qatar — yet Ronaldo endures, ready to play in a record sixth World Cup. The 41-year-old remains a global superstar despite swapping the European elite for Saudi Arabia’s Al-Nassr, and is the leading men’s international goalscorer with 143 strikes. With 25 of those coming in 30 games under Martinez, the coach
Taiwanese tennis star Hsieh Su-wei on Wednesday advanced to the second round of the mixed doubles at the French Open, after she and German partner Mark Wallner defeated Slovenian Andreja Klepac and Briton Lloyd Glasspool in straight sets, despite temperatures exceeding 32°C in Paris, while Taiwan’s top men’s doubles player Ray Ho also reached the second round. Hsieh, who made it to the semi-finals in the mixed doubles at Roland Garros in 2024, and Wallner defeated Klepac and Glasspool 6-3, 7-5 in just more than an hour, converting three of five break points, while holding their opponents to just one conversion
FAST AND LOOSE: Despite command struggles, Ohtani has pitched his way out of trouble after falling behind in counts, which manager Roberts credited to his velocity Shohei Ohtani on Wednesday night tossed six innings of no-hit ball, gave himself an early lead with a home run and still was not satisfied with his performance. The Los Angeles Dodgers’ two-way superstar dropped some expletives that were picked up by the on-field mic as he struggled with his command in a 4-1 win over the Colorado Rockies. He struck out seven, walked four and gave up an earned run in the fourth inning while visibly fuming on the mound. Ohtani (5-2) earned his third consecutive victory. “Just command was off, and I just felt like I was battling the lack of
Taiwanese sprinter Chen Yi-cen on Friday won the silver medal in the women’s 400m final at the Asian U20 Athletics Championships in Hong Kong, with a time of 53.16 seconds. Chen, 15, was the youngest among the eight finalists, and her performance also met the qualifying standard of 53.50 seconds for the Nagoya Asian Games in Japan in September and October. Chen first made her mark at the National Games in Tainan in 2023, at the age of 13, winning the women’s 400m final in 55.55 seconds to become the youngest gold medalist in the history of the event. Meanwhile,
RSS