Chinese athletes kicked off the 9th Asian Winter Games in Harbin, northeast China’s Heilongjiang Province, with an impressive display, clinching eight gold medals on the first day of competitions.
Dominating the Slopes
Li Fanghui secured the first gold for the host nation in the women’s freeski halfpipe final at Yabuli Ski Resort. With a stunning score of 95.25 points in her third run, she edged out teammate Zhang Kexin, who earned silver with 89.25 points. South Korea’s Jang Yu-jin took bronze with 85 points.
In the women’s snowboard slopestyle final, Zhang Xiaonan soared to victory with a commanding 95.25 points, a full 20 points ahead of silver medalist Xiong Shirui, also from China. Japan’s Ishii Himari rounded out the podium, taking bronze.
Record-Breaking on the Ice
On the speed skating rink, Gao Tingyu shattered the men’s 100-meter Games record, clocking in at 9.35 seconds to claim the gold. Kazakhstan’s Yevgeniy Koshkin trailed behind for silver.
Ning Zhongyang continued China’s golden streak by breaking the men’s 1,500-meter Games record, finishing in 1:45.85. He outpaced Japan’s Kazuya Yamada and Ryota Kojima, who took silver and bronze respectively.
In an all-Chinese podium sweep, Han Mei clinched gold in the women’s 1,500-meter speed skating final with a time of 1:57.58. Teammates Yang Binyu and Yin Qi captured silver and bronze.
Short Track Triumphs
Lin Xiaojun secured China’s only short track speed skating gold of the day in the men’s 500-meter final, finishing in 41.150 seconds. He edged out South Korea’s Park Ji-won and Jang Sung-woo, who took silver and bronze.
Cross-Country Victories
Li Lei and Wang Qiang added to China’s medal haul by winning the women’s and men’s cross-country skiing sprint classic finals, respectively.
