Key Takeaways
- China surpassed 100 gold medals at the Asian Games.
- Japan's marathon champion Ichitaka Yamashita won in record time.
- 11-year-old Yuki Kurihara became the youngest esports champion.
China continued its dominance at the Asian Games on Saturday, surpassing the 100-gold medal mark as its athletes excelled in various sports including shooting, canoe sprint, and diving.
In the diving competition, China secured gold in both the women’s synchronised 10m platform and men’s synchronised 3m springboard, further cementing its status as a powerhouse in the sport.
Meanwhile, Japan celebrated its home heroes, with Ichitaka Yamashita delivering the hosts’ seventh men’s marathon title in a time of 2 hours, 10 minutes and 49 seconds. The victory was particularly memorable as Yamashita stayed out of the early work before making his decisive move with 10 kilometres remaining.
The women’s marathon also produced a veteran success, with Bahrain’s 36-year-old Shitaye Eshete claiming gold 16 years after winning a 10,000m bronze at the Guangzhou Games. Eshete held off China’s Ciren Cuomu and Japan’s Mikuni Yada, who took silver and bronze respectively.
In a heartwarming moment, 11-year-old Yuki Kurihara, believed to be the youngest competitor at the Games, won gold in the Puyo Puyo Champions esports competition. Kurihara, who says he eats eel before competitions, admitted he felt embarrassed by the attention but was delighted with his medal. He said, 'The gold medal is really beautiful, shiny and heavy.'
However, the Games faced scrutiny over sparse crowds and logistical problems. Satoshi Murate, secretary-general of the organising committee, acknowledged that fewer than 60 per cent of tickets had been sold for eight sports, including football and the closing ceremony. Large sections of the athletics stadium were left empty, while some tickets allocated to sponsors and other stakeholders went unused.
Murate also apologised for accommodation and transport mistakes that had left some athletes stranded for hours. He attributed some of the pressure to a late influx of around 2,000 additional athletes and officials, while saying services had improved from the early days of the Games.
In the pool, Japanese teenager Shin Ohashi set a new world record in the men’s 200 metres breaststroke, clocking 2:04.83. This achievement followed in the footsteps of 13-year-old Yu Zidi, who had earlier capped her fairytale Asian Games debut with a hat-trick of gold medals.
Ohashi’s coach is reportedly Leon Marchand, the Olympic 200m breaststroke champion, who views the young prodigy as a serious rival. Marchand said, 'I’m scared. I’m very scared of him. He’s still so young. His coach is really good. I think his entourage, the people around him, are really good, so I hope he’s going to keep improving.'
The world record was my goal so I’m very happy to get it.
Shin Ohashi, 17-year-old Japanese swimmer
The gold medal is really beautiful, shiny and heavy.
Yuki Kurihara, 11-year-old Japanese esports champion
I’m scared. I’m very scared of him.
Leon Marchand, Olympic 200m breaststroke champion
