BEIJING, July 19 (Xinhua) -- Here are the latest Chinese sports headlines from the past week:
1. Defending champion China stunned at FIBA Women's Asia Cup
Japan upset defending champion China 90-81 in the semifinal of the FIBA Women's Asia Cup on July 19.
Yang Shuyu led China with 19 points, while Han Xu and Zhang Ziyu contributed 18 and 17 points, respectively.
"The players really wanted to play well, and they tried really hard. Before the game, we set our specific game plan, but when we played the twin towers, we had some mistakes on defense and gave them wide-open 3s, this is what we need to improve," commented China coach Gong Luming.
China will take on South Korea in the bronze medal contest on Sunday.
2. Ren Min powers China into final showdown with Japan at women's softball Asia Cup
Two home runs from Ren Min propelled China to an 8-4 victory over Chinese Taipei and a place in the women's softball Asia Cup final against defending champion Japan as the round-robin stage concluded here on July 19.
With the victory, China finished second on the standings behind Japan with an 8-1 record, enough to secure its berth for the 2026 World Cup.
Looking into the second encounter with the world No. 1 after Friday's 10-0 loss, Ren noted: "I hope we can play our game just like we did today, cherishing every pitch and every swing, and doing everything we should do."
3. He, Lu win China's first 2025 Universiade gold in women's synchro 10m platform
He Yanwei and Lu Wei secured the first gold medal for the Chinese delegation in the women's synchronized 10-meter platform diving, as the Rhine-Ruhr 2025 FISU World University Games competitions kicked off on July 17.
He and Lu delivered a composed and steady performance throughout the competition, extending their lead gradually with seamless coordination and consistent excellence. The duo led in every one of the five rounds, accumulating a total of 330.18 points - more than 30 points ahead of the silver medalists from Germany.
Despite having trained together for less than two weeks, He and Lu demonstrated good teamwork. He commented, "As long as both divers have solid individual techniques, coordination isn't that difficult."
4. Wang Chuqin wins men's singles gold at WTT US Smash
China's Wang Chuqin swept Japan's Tomokazu Harimoto in the men's singles final at the WTT US Smash in Las Vegas on July 13.
Wang, who became China's first left-handed men's singles world champion earlier this year, gave little chance to the third-seeded Harimoto, who has a reputation for struggling against left-handed opponents.
In the women's singles final, Zhu Yuling, once a key player on the Chinese national team and now representing Macao, China, used her experience, strong backhands and unpredictable rhythm changes to overcome a two-set deficit and defeat China's Chen Yi 7-11, 8-11, 11-7, 11-5, 11-9, 11-8 in 56 minutes.
5. China's Zheng Qinwen has elbow surgery, eyes return
Chinese tennis player Zheng Qinwen said on social media July 19 that she has undergone successful surgery on her right elbow and is now recovering.
"During recent training sessions and competitions, I have been consistently bothered by pain in my right elbow," Zheng wrote. "Although I persisted through interventions, the impact of the pain persisted. After diagnosis by elbow specialists, they recommended to me and my team to complete minimally invasive arthroscopic surgery on the right elbow as soon as possible to thoroughly resolve the issue."
Earlier this season, Zheng reached a career-high No. 4 in the WTA singles rankings.■
