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HANGZHOU, China (Reuters) – With no major security incidents and a record number of gold medals for its athletes, China will regard the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou as a triumph of soft power that met a number of political and operational requirements for guests.
In fact, the first major national sporting event of the post-Covid era was marred by diplomatic tensions, failed arbitrations and a lack of accountability on the part of the organising bodies.
Ahead of its dazzling opening ceremony, the Games were overshadowed by a visa dispute that prevented three Indian athletes from competing.
The martial artists came from a region of India disputed by China, and India’s sports minister canceled a planned attendance at the Games in protest.
The Olympic Council of Asia (OCA), which organizes the multi-sport event, said it was investigating the matter but never said anything about it.
The ridiculous official slogan of the Games is “Heart to heart, @futuro”, although a more apt slogan might have been “Let things happen”.
North Korea arrived in force for its first major sporting event since the 2018 Asian Games, after closing its doors to the world (and foreign doping controllers) for years. By failing to comply with the global anti-doping code, the lone nation flag is banned. at multi-sport events outside the Olympics, but flew to Hangzhou with the OCA.
Approximately 12,400 athletes from forty-five countries competed, one year later than planned due to COVID-19.
World-class quality is rare across much of the 40-sport program, but there were some surprising achievements, especially in the pool, where Chinese swimmers shined. After being beaten by Japan in the swimming medals in Jakarta, China won 28 of the 41 titles. , continuing its resurgence after an impressive world championship in Fukuoka.
Butterfly queen Zhang Yufei and breaststroke king Qin Haiyang won a combined 11 gold medals and won the MVP award of the Games.
Teenager Pan Zhanle has become a risk for next year’s Olympic 100m freestyle, swimming at a world record speed in the 4x100m medley relay.
Dominant in its classical strengths of badminton, diving and table tennis, China topped the medals table for an eleventh consecutive Games with 201 gold medals, surpassing its previous record of 199 in Guangzhou in 2010.
Japan, second, won 52 gold medals and South Korea, third with 42. India, on the rise rapidly, was very happy to finish fourth with a national record of 28 gold medals and surpassed their goal of one hundred medals in total.
Breakdancers competed at the Games for the first time, in anticipation of the discipline’s Olympic debut in Paris.
The debut of esports as a chance to win medals turned out to be a success. Local enthusiasts flocked to see South Korean star player Lee Sang-hyeok, known as “Faker,” in the “League of Legends” category.
Rested from the final, Lee joined his teammates to win gold and a coveted exemption from South Korea’s military service.
Paris St Germain midfielder Lee Kang-in may also miss military service as South Korea beat Japan 2-1 in the men’s final.
Qatar’s Mutaz Barshim in the high jump won his third gold medal at the Asian Games, but athletics has been marred by controversies and official mistakes.
One limb suffered a damaged leg and bled severely after being hit with a misthrown hammer.
Olympic and world champion Neeraj Chopra won the javelin but had to restart his first attempt after a long and confusing interruption when he was unable to register his trademark.
The women’s 100m hurdles was a farce when China’s Wu Yanni made a false start, but the government disqualified her Indian rival Jyothi Yarraji.
Eventual silver medalist Yarraji, who was one step away from Wu, protested and officials corrected their decision, but Wu was allowed to run in protest before eventually being disqualified.
The men’s kabaddi final between India and Iran was halted for an hour due to a dispute between officials that caused the two groups to stage protests.
Afghanistan, however, had no recourse when the men’s cricket final against India was abandoned due to rain.
With no day off due to the weather and no chance to share the medal, India won the gold medal only because of their highest world ranking.
North Korea was a sore loser after losing 2-1 to Japan in the men’s soccer quarterfinals. Security workers intervened after several of their players assaulted and mistreated the referee in the box after the game ended.
Anti-doping controllers at the Games reported that seven athletes had been suspended due to testing, in addition to an athlete from Turkmenistan who won silver at the kurash, the Central Asian wrestling event.
Supported by the OCA and IOC, he represented Afghanistan in cycling, volleyball and athletics, challenging the Taliban, who ended the game in the country.
“Now they have hope,” Afghan volleyball player Mursal Khedri said of the country’s athletes. “By seeing us here, they will be able to regain hope. “
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