Gold medalist Sun Peiyuan of China poses for photos during the award ceremony for the wushu men's Changquan at the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province on Sept. 24, 2023. (Xinhua/Li Yibo)
Asiad Wushu competition kicked off on Sunday with host nation China grabbing two titles.
HANGZHOU, Sept. 24 (Xinhua) -- Chinese athletes dominated the first day of Wushu tournament at the Hangzhou Asian Games here on Sunday with Sun Peiyuan and Tong Xin claiming gold in the men's Changquan and women's Taiji all-round respectively.
"I've been looking forward to the Asian Games for a long time. It feels good to win the gold medal at home," said Sun, who triumphed on 9.840 points.
Edgar Xavier Marvelo of Indonesia claimed the silver, while Song Chi Kuan from Macao, China came third.
"I cherish this opportunity of participating in the Hangzhou Asiad, and enthusiasm of the audience pushed me a lot," said Sun, who regarded it as a dream came true.
Feng Jingkun, coach of Taolu events of China's Wushu team, hailed Sun's performance as "perfect."
"Sun's preparations have been plagued for the Asian Games," said Feng, praising Sun's perseverance.
Sun, 34, had two golds to his name from previous Asian Games - apiece at Incheon 2014 and Jakarta 2018.
Tong Xin of China competes during women's Taijiquan final. (Xinhua/Song Yanhua)
Later on Sunday, Tong put on stellar performances to win the Taijiquan and Taijijian all-round gold medal. Basma Lachkar of Brunei and Chen Suijin from Hong Kong, China won silver and bronze respectively.
An ancient martial art that originated in China, previously and more commonly known as kung fu, wushu is making its ninth consecutive appearance at an Asian Games in Hangzhou.
The Wushu competition, offering a total of 15 gold medals, will run through to September 28. ■
