GUANGZHOU, Nov. 16 (Xinhua) — China‘s 15th National Games saw a gold-rich climax on Sunday, producing 43 gold medals across various sports where legendary athletes solidified their legacies while rising stars announced their arrival.
In a display of sustained excellence, several defending champions reaffirmed their dominance. Olympic champion Gong Lijiao of Hebei closed her stellar career by winning her fifth consecutive National Games women’s shot put title with a mark of 19.68 meters.
“This gold medal is enough to prove my 25 years of dedication,” said an emotional Gong, who dedicated the victory to her late mother.
In men’s gymnastics, Liu Yang of Liaoning successfully defended his rings title with a score of 14.940, while in weightlifting, Li Fabin of Fujian retained his men’s 61kg crown with a total lift of 306kg.
The table tennis arena witnessed Fan Zhendong of Shanghai securing his sixth career National Games gold, defending his men’s singles title with a 4-1 victory over Hainan’s Lin Shidong.
“At the beginning, I didn’t feel at ease. I continued to elevate my performance and felt delighted to seize the gold,” Fan said after his fourth appearance in the singles final at the National Games.
“Each Games tells a new story at different stages of my career. It is always difficult to top the podium at the National Games. What I need to do is to keep improving my skills and mentality. My next goal is to help Shanghai achieve a great result in the team event,” Fan said.
Meanwhile, Wang Manyu of Heilongjiang replicated her previous success with a 4-2 victory over Hebei’s Sun Yingsha to defend her women’s singles crown.
The Games bid farewell to several beloved athletes, including Gong, badminton stars He Bingjiao of Jiangsu and Chen Qingchen of Guangdong.
“My career, from beginning to end, has been perfectly complete without any regrets,” said a tearful He after her defeat to longtime teammate Chen Yufei in her fourth National Games appearance. Chen Qingchen echoed the sentiment, calling her final National Games appearance a journey without regrets.
The day also showcased China‘s next generation of talent. The archery range witnessed 20-year-old Zong Yu of Hubei emerge as an unexpected champion, defeating national team archers Li Jiaman and Huang Yuwei en route to the women’s recurve individual title.
In the ocean waves of Shantou, 16-year-old Olympic surfer Yang Siqi of Sichuan dominated the women’s shortboard competition, winning by a massive 5.33-point margin to claim her first National Games title. While in fencing, 15-year-old Zou Tianyi of Jiangsu captured the silver medal in men’s foil, only narrowly losing to Fujian’s Xu Jie in the final.
The swimming pool saw veteran Zhang Yufei of Jiangsu claim the women’s 50m butterfly gold in 25.61 seconds, her second title of the Games, while veteran Xu Jiayu of Zhejiang set a new national record of 24.36 seconds in the men’s 50m backstroke semifinal. In a surprising upset, Hong Kong’s Ho Ian Yentou edged out top contenders to win the men’s 50m freestyle.
On the track, Xi Xiaoheng of Zhejiang delivered a stunning performance in the men’s 800m, overtaking favorite Liu Dezhu in the final stretch to claim gold and break the national record with a time of 1:45.48.
The unusual sight of re-runs occurred in the 4x400m mixed relay, where Anhui and Zhejiang teams were granted a re-race due to a technical fault in the previous day’s final. Both teams surpassed the original third-place finisher’s time, resulting in three teams sharing the bronze medal.
At the Hong Kong golf course, pressure reached its peak as Zhang Weiwei of Guangdong needed a dramatic birdie on the final hole and three extra holes in a playoff to defeat Tianjin’s Yin Ruoning for the women’s individual title.
“The National Games happens only once every four years. The pressure is immense,” Zhang admitted after her victory.
On the men’s side, Kuang Yang of Zhejiang maintained his lead throughout the tournament despite confessing he was “so nervous I almost vomited” on the final morning.
The iron will of athletes was further displayed in Hong Kong’s triathlon mixed relay, where Shandong team overcame an early setback, including a bike crash, to overtake Hong Kong in the final leg and secure gold by a mere 11 seconds.
