China collects 8 golds to cement top position at Asian Youth Games

Alsharq Tribune-M.Essam 

Team China won eight gold medals in weightlifting, taekwondo, athletics and beach volleyball on Sunday to remain atop the medal standings at the 3rd Asian Youth Games.

Chinese weightlifters Jiang Jinfu, Chen Xunfa and Wu Jihong delivered dominant performances. In the boys' 56kg, Jiang equaled the world youth record in the clean and jerk and set a new Asian youth record. Chen set Asian youth and Games records in the boys' 60kg snatch, while Wu won the girls' 44kg snatch.

In taekwondo, China collected four golds, five silvers and three bronzes. "Many of our athletes competed in an international event for the first time. They went all out and showed great performances," said coach Shen Cheng.

Chinese duo Fan Yuhan and Zhuang Ming rallied to win the girls' beach volleyball title. After dropping the opening set due to errors, they responded in the second. In the decider, the pair saved four championship points and then won six points in a row to turn the match.

"In the decider we were a bit hesitant, wanting to win while being afraid to lose," Fan said after the match. "With no way back, we capitalized on our opponents' impatience and held firm. It was really not easy."

China leads the medal table with 34 golds, 24 silvers and 11 bronzes, followed by Uzbekistan and Thailand.