Gold medalist Zhang Dong (C) of China, silver medalist Shakhriyor Makhkamov (L) of Uzbekistan and bronze medalist Kirill Tubayev of Kazakhstan attend the awarding ceremony for Men's Kayak Single 1000m of Canoe Sprint at the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province, Oct. 2, 2023. (Xinhua/Shan Yuqi)
HANGZHOU, Oct. 2 (Xinhua) -- China took four out of six gold medals in the canoe sprint competitions at the Hangzhou Asian Games on Monday.
China's first gold medal of the day came from the men's kayak single 1000m by Zhang Dong in 3:46.224. Shakhriyor Makhkamov of Uzbekistan came second in 3:49.978 while Kirill Tubayev from Kazakhstan got the bronze with 3:51.399.
"I definitely wanted to get the first kayak gold for the Chinese team, so I started with a heavy psychological burden at the beginning of the heat, but now I feel much relaxed. I hope I could achieve a better result in next year's Olympic Games," Zhang said.
Olympic and world champions Xu Shixiao and Sun Mengya took another gold for China in the women's canoe double 500m. The duo have dominated the event since 2019, when they won their first world title together.
"Hard training and adequate logistics support are the key for our grand slam. Our main purpose of the competition today is to make a conclusion for this year, and now we get fully prepared for next year's Olympic Games in Paris," Xu said.
China's Yin Mengdie and Wang Nan won the women's kayak double 500m final in 1:49.944, adding to its victory in the men's kayak double 500m by Bu Tingkai and Wang Congkang in 1:36.658.
The other two gold medals of the day went to Chinese Taipei and Kazakhstan, as Lai Kuan-Chieh grabbed the first canoe gold for Chinese Taipei in the men's canoe single 1000m, and Kazakhstan's Timur Khaidarov and Sergey Yemelyanov claimed the men's canoe double 500m title.
"My initial goal was to place third, and I never thought I could win. During the race, it seemed like I fell to fourth or fifth place at the beginning, but my coach told me to follow my rivals closely and focus on the last 200m. And in the end, I won the game," Lai said.
The canoe and kayak competitions, generating 12 gold medals, run from September 30 to October 3 at the Fuyang Water Sports Center. Enditem
Zhang Dong of China competes during Men's Kayak Single 1000m Final of Canoe Sprint at the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province, Oct. 2, 2023. (Xinhua/Shan Yuqi)
Gold medalists Sun Mengya (R)/Xu Shixiao of China attend the awarding ceremony for the Women's Canoe Double 500m of Canoe Sprint at the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province, Oct. 2, 2023. (Xinhua/Shan Yuqi)
Gold medalists Wang Nan (R)/Yin Mengdie of China attend the awarding ceremony for the Women's Kayak Double 500m of Canoe Sprint at the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province, Oct. 2, 2023. (Xinhua/Shan Yuqi)
Gold medalist Lai Kuan-Chieh (C) of Chinese Taipei shakes hands with silver medalist Vladlen Denisov of Uzbekistan during the awarding ceremony for the Men's Canoe Single 1000m of Canoe Sprint at the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province, Oct. 2, 2023. (Xinhua/Du Xiaoyi)
Gold medalists Sun Mengya (L)/Xu Shixiao of China attend the awarding ceremony for the Women's Canoe Double 500m of Canoe Sprint at the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province, Oct. 2, 2023. (Xinhua/Du Xiaoyi)
Silver medalists Mariya Brovkova (2nd L)/Rufina Iskakova of Kazakhstan and gold medalists Sun Mengya (1st R)/Xu Shixiao of China attend the awarding ceremony for the Women's Canoe Double 500m of Canoe Sprint at the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province, Oct. 2, 2023. (Xinhua/Du Xiaoyi)
Sun Mengya (R, front)/Xu Shixiao of China interact with spectators during the awarding ceremony for the Women's Canoe Double 500m of Canoe Sprint at the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province, Oct. 2, 2023. (Xinhua/Du Xiaoyi)
Gold medalists Sun Mengya (R)/Xu Shixiao of China attend the awarding ceremony for the Women's Canoe Double 500m of Canoe Sprint at the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province, Oct. 2, 2023. (Xinhua/Du Xiaoyi)
Sun Mengya (L)/Xu Shixiao of China compete during the Women's Canoe Double 500m of Canoe Sprint at the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province, Oct. 2, 2023. (Xinhua/Du Xiaoyi)
Gold medalist Zhang Dong (C) of China, silver medalist Shakhriyor Makhkamov (L) of Uzbekistan and bronze medalist Kirill Tubayev of Kazakhstan attend the awarding ceremony for Men's Kayak Single 1000m of Canoe Sprint at the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province, Oct. 2, 2023. (Xinhua/Shan Yuqi)
Ji Bowen of China competes during the Men's Canoe Single 1000m Final of Canoe Sprint at the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province, Oct. 2, 2023. (Xinhua/Du Xiaoyi)
Zhang Dong (R) of China competes during Men's Kayak Single 1000m Final of Canoe Sprint at the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province, Oct. 2, 2023. (Xinhua/Shan Yuqi)
Gold medalists Wang Nan (R)/Yin Mengdie of China attend the awarding ceremony for the Women's Kayak Double 500m of Canoe Sprint at the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province, Oct. 2, 2023. (Xinhua/Du Xiaoyi)
Gold medalists team China (C), silver medalists team Kazakhstan (L) and bronze medalists team Uzbekistan attend the awarding ceremony for the Women's Kayak Double 500m of Canoe Sprint at the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province, Oct. 2, 2023. (Xinhua/Du Xiaoyi)
Wang Nan (L)/Yin Mengdie of China compete during the Women's Kayak Double 500m Final of Canoe Sprint at the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province, Oct. 2, 2023. (Xinhua/Du Xiaoyi)
Gold medalists Bu Tingkai (L)/Wang Congkang of China attend the awarding ceremony for the Men's Kayak Double 500m of Canoe Sprint at the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province, Oct. 2, 2023. (Xinhua/Shan Yuqi)
Gold medalists Bu Tingkai (L)/Wang Congkang of China attend the awarding ceremony for the Men's Kayak Double 500m of Canoe Sprint at the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province, Oct. 2, 2023. (Xinhua/Shan Yuqi)
