China continued to assert its dominance on Day 2 of the Asian Athletics Championships in Gumi, South Korea, yet Japan surged forward after a subdued opening day, claiming three gold medals in spectacular fashion.
Gold Medals For Japan
In the men's 1500m, Kazuto Iizawa (3:42.56) showcased resilience as he fended off a fierce challenge from home crowd favorite Jaeung Lee (3:42.79) and India's Yoonus Shah (3:43.03). Not to be outdone, Hiroki Yanagita triumphed in the electrifying men's 100m sprint, crossing the finish line in 10.2 seconds. He was just ahead of Thailand’s Puripol Boonson (also 10.2 seconds), who secured silver, and Saudi Arabia’s Abdullah Abkar M Mohammed (10.30), who earned bronze. Completing Japan’s golden trio, Nanako Matsumoto unleashed a strong finishing burst to claim victory in the women’s 400m with a time of 52.17 seconds, leaving India’s Rupal Rupal (52.68) to settle for silver and Uzbekistan’s Jonbibi Hukmova (52.79) to take bronze.
China Continues Strong Showing
Meanwhile, China remained firmly in command. In the men's hammer throw, Wang Qi launched an impressive 74.5m to seize gold, while Japan's Tatsuto Nakagawa (71.97m) and Shota Fukuda (71.89m) secured the remaining podium spots. The decathlon saw Fei Xiang (7,634 points) edge out India’s Tejaswin Shankar (7,618 points) and Japan’s Keisuke Okuda (7,602 points) in a gripping contest. In the triple jump, Zhu Yaming (17.06m) dominated proceedings, fending off his closest competitors, India’s Praveen Chithravel (16.90m) and South Korea’s Gyumin Yu (16.82m).
China’s women also delivered stellar performances. Li Chunhui continued the nation’s impressive run, clinching gold in the 1500m with a time of 4:10.58, ahead of India’s Pooja Pooja (4:10.83) and Japan’s Tomoka Kimura (4:11.56). Niu Chunge soared to victory in the pole vault, clearing 4.48m to take gold, while compatriot Xu Huiqin (4.23m) secured silver and Japan’s Misaki Morota (4.13m) captured bronze. In the women’s 100m sprint, Liang Xiaojing blazed to victory in 11.37 seconds, with Singapore’s Veronica Shanti Pereira (11.41) taking second place and Vietnam’s Tran Thi Nhi Yen (11.54) finishing third.
Gold For Qatar & India
Yet Day 2 was not solely about China and Japan. Qatar, for instance, also made its mark. In the men’s 400m, Ammar Ismail Y Ibrahim surged ahead in a closely contested race, clocking 45.33 seconds to narrowly outpace Japan’s Kentaro Sato (45.50) and Sri Lanka’s Kalinga Kumarage Hewa Kumarage (45.55). India’s Vishal Thennarasu Kayalvizhi (45.57) and Japan’s Fuga Sato (45.59) just missed out by mere fractions of a second.
India celebrated triumph in the 4x400m mixed relay. The team of Rupal Rupal, Santhosh Kumar Tamilarasan, Vishal Thennarasu Kayalvizhi, and Subha Venkatesan displayed seamless teamwork to clock 3:18.12 and fend off challenges from China and Sri Lanka. China’s quartet – made up of Liang Baotang, Liu Yinglan, Wu Hongjiao, and Ailixier Wumaier - secured silver with a time of 3:20.52. Sri Lanka claimed bronze with 3:21.95, thanks to the efforts of Kalinga Kumarage Hewa Kumarage, Nishendra Harshani Fernando Maddappuli Arachchige, Sadew Wimansa Rajakaruna Senarath Mudiyanselage and Sayuri Lakshima Mendis Balapuwaduge –
Exciting Heats
Earlier in the day, the preliminary rounds set the stage for further drama in the days ahead. Japan’s Sumire Hata, Iran’s Reihaneh Mobini Arani, India’s Shaili Singh, Hong Kong’s Nga Yan Yue, China’s Guo Sijia, and Kazakhstan’s Anastassiya Rypakova led the charge in the women’s long jump. Meanwhile, in the men’s 110m hurdles, Japan’s Rachid Muratake, Qatar’s Oumar Doudai O Abakar, Iran’s Masoud Kamran, and China’s Liu Junxi and Qin Weibo dominated their heats. In the women’s 100m hurdles, Japan’s Yumi Tanaka looked imperious but will be pushed to the limit by China’s Wu Yanni, Indonesia’s Dina Aulia, Taipei’s Bo Ya Zhang, and India’s Jyoti Yarraji.
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