Gold medallist China’s Quan Hongchan (centre), Silver medallist China’s Chen Yuxi (left) and Bronze medallist Malaysia’s Pandelela Pamg celebrate on the podium after the finals of womens 10m platform diving event during the Hangzhou 2022 Asian Games in Hangzhou, in China's eastern Zhejiang province on October 3, 2023. - AFP
HANGZHOU, China, Oct 3 (Reuters): Indonesia's Rahmat Erwin Abdullah set a weightlifting world record and China's world-beating teenage divers wowed fans, but their soccer players crashed out on day 10 of the Hangzhou Asian Games on Tuesday.
Abdullah secured gold with a lift of 201kg in the men's 73kg clean and jerk, which beat the previous record of 200kg which he set last December.
The 22-year-old's lift follows three other world records set by North Korean weightlifters at this Games.
"I had a pretty good performance, but I was still not at my maximum," Abdullah said. "I always empty my mind every time I lift. I wanted to just focus on my clean and jerk, nothing else."
At the climbing wall his compatriot and 2023 world champion Desak Made Rita Kusuma Dewi, 22, won gold in the women's speed event ahead of Asian record holder, Deng Lijuan from China, who took silver.
"I was unwell for about a week just before coming to Hangzhou so I see my achievement here as outstanding," Dewi said.
In the men's event Iran's Reza Ali Pour Shenazandi Fard, 29, defended the title he won in Jakarta in 2018 after China's Long Jinbao, 22, fell in the final and so finished with silver.
Dewi's compatriot, Veddriq Leonardo, 26, who was the pre-competition favourite, could only manage bronze after he too slipped in his semi-final contest with Fard.
In the soccer competition, China's women were beaten 4-3 by Japan in a goal-fest of a semi-final, joining the host men's team who were knocked out on Sunday by South Korea.
China went in 4-1 down at the break after a stinker of a first half. In the second half they pulled two goals back and were pushing for an equaliser at the end.
The result capped a miserable few months for the Steel Roses after they crashed out of the World Cup in the group stage with a 6-1 thrashing by eventual finalists England. North Korea will meet Japan in the final on Friday after beating Uzbekistan 8-0 in the other semi-final.
Gold medallist Indonesia’s Rahmat Abdullah (centre), bronze medallist North Korea’s OH Kumthaek and Thailand’s silver medallist Weeraphon Wichuma (left) stand in the podium during the medal ceremony for the men’s 73kg group A weightlifting competition during the 2022 Asian Games in Hangzhou, in China's eastern Zhejiang province on October 3, 2023. - AFP
DIVERS DELIGHT
China's teenage sensations Quan Hongchan and Chen Yuxi wowed fans as they went head to head in the final of the women's 10m platform.
Quan, 16, who took gold at the Tokyo Olympics, won with 438.20 points, just under three points ahead of her 18-year-old team mate. Pandelela Rinong Pamg of Malaysia took bronze with 280.5.
"I feel like there's someone missing next to me," Quan said of Tuesday's final, after winning gold with Chen in the synchronised 10m platform on Saturday. "I went diving by myself today, so I was still a little nervous."
In the men's 3m springboard final China's multiple world champion Wang Zongyuan, 21, also delighted fans as he comfortably won his second gold of the Games after winning the 1m springboard a day earlier.
"I always say to myself, stay true to yourself, stay true to your original dream," Wang said. "Follow the wind, the wind will take me to the Paris 2024 Olympic Games."
In athletics China's Olympic silver medallist and world bronze medallist triple jumper Zhu Yaming, 29, once again underlined his championship pedigree with a 17.13m jump to take gold.
"My family has sacrificed a lot for me to compete," Zhu said.
"I'm often not around for them and I feel quite sorry about that."
The hosts also won gold in the men's and women's 4x100m relays and the men's decathlon.
But there was disappointment in the women's javelin for defending Asian Games and Tokyo Olympic champion, Liu Shiying, who could only manage fifth with a throw of 57.62, nearly 10 metres off her best. India's Annu Ranni won gold with a season's best throw of 62.92.
Olga Zabelinskaya won gold for Uzbekistan in the women's individual cycling time trial to become the latest Russia-born athlete to top the podium in Hangzhou.
"No matter if I represented Russia at the Olympic Games or Uzbekistan at the Asian Games, my goal has always been to win medals," said the 43-year-old who won medals at the London and Rio Olympics representing Russia.
"I don’t pay much attention to the nationality."
The International Olympic Committee is expected to discuss Russia's and Belarus' participation at the Paris Olympics at a session in Mumbai later this month.
Russian and Belarusian athletes will compete as neutrals at the Paris Paralympics after the International Paralympic Committee voted against maintaining a full ban of the two countries, imposed after the 2022 invasion of Ukraine, which Moscow calls a "special military operation".
(Reporting by Martin Quin Pollard; Additional reporting by Ian Ransom Editing by Toby Davis)
