The first gold medal of the 20th Asian Games was won on Sunday by hosts Japan as 13-year-old Chinese swimmer Yu Zidi started in blistering form on the opening day of the multisports extravaganza.
Japan’s Takumi Hojo won the men’s individual triathlon with China’s Zhang Xirui second and Kazakhstan’s Arlan Zhanabay taking bronze.
It was the first of 469 gold medals to be awarded at the two-week spectacle in Aichi-Nagoya that has more athletes than the Olympics.
Action also began in the swimming pool, where Yu, who does not turn 14 until next month, was fastest by far in the women’s 200m butterfly heats.
Teenager Yu touched almost 2.70 seconds ahead of compatriot Chang Mohan and will be a hot favourite to take her first major gold in Sunday evening’s final.
China’s men’s 100m freestyle world record holder and Olympic champion Pan Zhanle also went through fastest to the final in 48.07sec, but was only 0.06sec quicker than South Korea’s Hwang Sun-woo.
Pan fired a warning to his rivals for gold: “I think tonight I will be better.”
The Games were officially declared open on Saturday by Japan’s Emperor Naruhito but there were a large number of empty seats at the 30,000-capacity stadium in Nagoya.
It sounded the starting pistol on a fortnight of intense action as the continent’s finest athletes compete in more than 40 sports before the curtain comes down on October 4.
The Games has 2028 Olympics places up for grabs but has been dogged by a series of problems in the build-up.
Accommodating the more than 11,000 athletes and 6,000 officials has stretched organisers to the limit after they decided not to have a traditional athletes’ village to save money.
Competitors instead are staying in a combination of temporary container-style huts, hotels and cruise ship the Costa Serena.
IOC president Kirsty Coventry called the temporary cabins “beautiful” on Sunday after having a look round — but conceded they were “a little tighter” than similar accommodation at the Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics earlier this year.
Typhoon closes venue
Organisers will be desperate for the sport to take over from the turbulent build-up.
However, an incoming typhoon that soaked Tokyo on Sunday could cause more problems.
Equestrian is one of three sports taking place in the Japanese capital, with organisers saying the venue will be closed on Sunday and Monday because of the weather.
Equestrian competition is now due to start on Tuesday, having been scheduled for a day earlier.
Olympic Council of Asia director general Husain Al-Musallam said the typhoon threat was part of the reason why there were thousands of empty seats at the opening ceremony in Nagoya.
The full force of Typhoon Dujuan won’t be felt until Monday, with Tokyo expected to be hit with strong winds and heavy rain.
Nagoya won’t be in the storm’s immediate path, but wet weather is forecast there too.
Japan win first gold
Triathlete Hojo finished the 750m swim, 20km bike ride and 5,000m run in 52min 56sec, nine seconds clear of Zhang.
“As it’s our first gold medal, it’s given the Japanese team a real boost,” said the 30-year-old Hojo, whose win will qualify him for the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles.
“I was really fired up. Even the rain held off, and I was in top form right up until I stood on the starting line,” added Hojo, who also won the Asian Games test triathlon a year ago on the same course.
China turned the tables later in the women’s individual triathlon, where Lin Xinyu improved on her silver medal at the last Asian Games in Hangzhou by winning in 57min 37sec.
India and China both made big statements in the women’s hockey.
China thrashed Bangladesh 13-0 while India hammered Uzbekistan 19-0.
Source: Khaleej Times