Rypakova retains triple jump Gold, China tops medal table with 12 Gold, 12 Silver, and 9 Bronze

The athletics programme of the Asian Games concluded in style in Jakarta on Thursday (30) as a long-standing Asian record was broken in the final event of the championships.

Qatar’s team included 400m hurdles champion Abderrahman Samba, who got his team off to a good start with a 44.5 lead-off leg. Mohamed Nasir Abbas and Mohamed El-Nour maintained the team’s lead before individual 400m champion Abdalelah Haroun anchored the team to victory in 3:00.56.

The quartet not only obliterated the Qatari record of 3:02.50 set in 2015, but they also took 0.2 off the Asian record of 3:00.76 set by Japan at the 1996 Olympic Games.

India clocked 3:01.85 to secure the silver medal from Japan, who recorded 3:01.94.

Rypakova and Chuaimaroeng (right) after winning gold and silver, respectively

Meanwhile, Kazakhstan’s 2012 Olympic champion Olga Rypakova maintained her remarkable domination of the women’s triple jump in Asia.

Her first valid jump, 14.00m, would have been sufficient to top the podium, but the 33-year-old improved to 14.26m in the fifth round to officially retain the triple jump title she had won in 2010 and 2014.

Thailand’s Parinya Chuaimaroeng and Vietnam’s Vu Thi Men both jumped 13.93m, but the former took silver on countback.

Kalkidan Gezahegne Befkadu, who had won the 5000m earlier in the Games, triumphed in the women’s 1500m in 4:07.88. She became just the second athlete of the Games, after sprinter Edidiong Odiong, to win two individual titles.

Her performance also marked Bahrain’s third successive victory in this event at the Asian Games. Tigist Belay made it a Bahraini 1-2, taking silver in 4:09.12, while India’s Asian champion Chitra Palakeezh was third in 4:12.56.

China, as they have done from 1986 onwards, topped the athletics medals table with 12 gold, 12 silver and nine bronze. Bahrain finished close behind, though, with 12 gold, six silver and seven bronze. The next Asian Games will be held in the Chinese city of Hangzhou in 2022.

Detailed story (Day 6)

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Yuki Koike beats Yang Chunhan in a Tight finish of men's 200m

The closest finish yet of the Asian Games came in the men’s 200m on the fifth day of athletics action in Jakarta on Wednesday (29).

It took a photo finish to separate Japan’s Yuki Koike and Chinese Taipei’s Yang Chunhan. After recording the same reaction time (0.139) and being level at half way, the two sprinters were inseparable for most of the race, the pair crossing the line in PBs of 20.23 (0.7m/s).

After an agonising wait, Koike was eventually confirmed as the winner. Chunhan, the Asian champion, had to settle for silver but was rewarded with a national record. Bahrain’s Mohamed Yacoob Salem was third in 20.55.

Koike beats Chunhan on the line; both cross the first 100m at 10.37s

Bahrain’s Edidiong Odiong, who had won the 100m earlier in the championships, completed a sprint double by winning the women’s 200m in 22.96, replicating the feats of Mona Sulaiman (1962), Esther Rot (1974), and Chisato Fukushima (2010).

As in the 100m, India’s Dutee Chand and China’s Wei Yongli finished second and third respectively, clocking 23.20 and 23.27. Defending champion Olga Safranova of Kazakhstan was fifth in 23.43.

Iran’s 2012 Olympic silver medallist Ehsan Hadadi underlined his continental dominance of the discus by earning a record fourth consecutive gold medal.

Any one of his six marks would have been more than enough to win, but the five-time Asian champion saved his best for last, throwing 65.71m in the final round.

Iraq’s 2014 Asian junior champion Mustafa Al-Saamah was second with 60.09m and was the only other man to throw beyond 60 metres.

With one more day of athletics action at the Asian Games, China tops the medals table with 11 gold medals. Bahrain is second with nine gold medals, and India is third with five. 10 more titles are on offer on the final day, including the men’s 50km race walk, 1500m, 5000m, 4x100m, 4x400m, plus the women’s 1500m, triple jump, discus and the two relays.

Detailed story (day 5)

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Xie Wenjun, Li Ling, Liu Shiying, Wang Chunyu clinches gold for China of fourth day of Asian Games

China took four out of seven gold medals on offer on the fourth day of athletics competition at the Asian Games in Jakarta on Tuesday (28).

The first one came from the men’s 110m hurdles as China’s Xie Wenjun successfully defended his title ahead of Chinese Taipei’s Chen Kueiru who was leading from the mid-way point. Xie, who trailed Japan’s Shunya Takayama and Chen, finally pulled ahead after the last hurdle, clocking 13.34, 0.02 faster than his winning time from 2014.

Li Ling clears 4.60m to break her own Asian Games record of 4.35m

In the women’s pole vault, China’s defending champion Li Ling cleared 4.60m to break her own Games record of 4.35m, which was held jointly with Gao Shuying. Li, who recorded an Asian indoor record of 4.70m last year, started off her competition at 4.20m, then broke the record with 4.40m before clearing 4.60m, both with her third attempts. She then topped out at 4.71m.

In the women’s javelin, China’s former Asian champion Liu Shiying rewrote the Games record with a 66.09m throw in the opening round. Liu, who won silver medal at 2012 IAAF World U20 Championships, registered her next four throws with distances of 64.13m to 65.39m before deciding to pass on her last attempt.

In the women’s 800m, China’s Wang Chunyu, who won the 2018 Asian indoors, pulled away from the field as she entered the home stretch to take gold in 2:01.80 from Kazakhstan’s defending champion Margarita Mukasheva, who passed Bahrain’s Manal Elbahraoui in the waning stages to finish second (2:02.40). The Bahraini took bronze in 2:02.69.

Elsewhere, Bahrain’s 100m champion Edidiong Odiong went through to the women’s 200m final comfortably after recording 23.01 in her semifinal, but it was India’s Dutee Chand who had the fastest time of the round clocking 23.00. Japan’s Yuki Koike, whose 200m best is 20.29, recorded the fastest time on the men’s side with 20.35, followed by Chinese Taipei’s Asian champion Yang Chunhan with 20.53, Salem Eid Yaqoob (20.61), Shota Iizuka (20.64), and Kim Kokyoung (20.66). Meanwhile, Tosin Ogunode who recorded 20.78 in the heats, injured his hamstring in the semi-final, knocking him out of the competition.

Eight gold medals will be decided on Wednesday (29): the men’s 200m, 20km race walk, pole vault, triple jump, and discus, and the women’s 200m, 20km race walk, and high jump.

Detailed story (day 4)

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Abderrahman Samba Breaks Asian Games Record

Another three Games records were broken on the third day of athletics at the Asian Games in Jakarta on Monday (27).

Qatar’s Abderrahman Samba arrived in the Indonesian capital as the hot favourite for the men’s 400m hurdles, having moved to second on the world all-time list earlier this year with his Asian record of 46.98.

It came as no surprise when he smashed the Games record of 48.42 with his winning clocking of 47.66. “I pushed it today as it was the final,” he said.

Abderrahman Samba clears the final barrier enroute to win his first Asiad gold

India's Dharun Ayyasamy secured the silver medal in a lifetime best of 48.96 ahead of Japan’s Takatoshi Abe who claimed bronze in 49.12.

Asian and Commonwealth champion Neeraj Chopra added another major title to his collection by winning the javelin with an Indian record of 88.06m. The 20-year-old opened with 83.46m and produced his winning effort in the third round

Chopra, who will next compete at the IAAF Diamond League final in Zurich, missed the Games record of 89.15m set by China’s Zhao Qinggang in 2014. China's Liu Qizhen grabbed silver with a lifetime best of 82.22m, while Pakistan’s Arshad Nadeem took the bronze medal with 80.75m.

Seven gold medals will be awarded on day four (29), the women’s 800m, 5000m, pole vault and javelin, plus the men’s 800m and 110m hurdles. There is also a mixed relay that will be held for the first time at the Asian Games.

Detailed story (day 3)

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Su Bingtian Breaks Asian Games 100m Record 9.92

Su Bingtian clinched the 100m gold medal to become the king of the sprint of the 18th Asian Games at Jakarta. Su, whose 100m best time is 9.91s has recorded a new Games Record of 9.92s ahead of Qatar's Tosin Ogunode and Japan's Ryoto Yamagata who registered an identical time of 10.00s in second and third, respectively. The silver and bronze medals have to be decided by the photo-finish.

Su Bingtian leads the field during the last 30m

Men's 100m final (+0.8)
1. Su Bingtian (CHN) 9.92
2. Tosin Ogunode (QAT) 10.00
3. Ryota Yamagata (JPN) 10.00
4. Abdullah Abkar Mohammed (KSA) 10.10
5. Chunhan Yang (TPE) 10.17
6. Hassan Taftian (IRI) 10.19
7. Lalu Muhammad Zohri (INA) 10.20
8. Kim Kukyoung (KOR) 10.26

Bahrain's Edidiong Odiong delivered the gold medal in a time of 11.30s, ahead of pre-race favorite Wei Yongli of China who ended up in third (11.33s) as she was overtaken by India's Dutee Chand (11.32s) on the line.

Women's 100m final (+0.3)
1. Edidiong Odiong (BRN) 11.30
2. Dutee Chand (IND) 11.32
3. Wei Yongli (CHN) 11.33
4. Hajar Al-Khaldi (BRN) 11.38
5. Liang Xioajing (CHN) 11.42
6. Olga Safronova (KAZ) 11.43
7. Nigina Sharipova (UZB) 11.45
8. Zaidatul Husniah Zulkifli (MAS) 11.61

Detailed story (day 2)

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