NAGOYA, Japan, Sept. 20 (Xinhua) -- China defended its women's team gold medal in modern pentathlon to secure the first gold medal for the Chinese delegation at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games on Sunday.
The women's individual and team events were held in Anjo, Aichi Prefecture. In the individual event, South Korea's Seong Seung-min won with 1,492 points. China's Zhang Mingyu took silver with 1,460 points, while her compatriot Wu Xiyao won bronze with 1,447 points.
Another Chinese competitor, Meng Xin, finished fifth with 1,411 points, while Fu Jing placed eighth with 1,389 points.
Under Asian Games rules, the team result is determined by the combined scores of each team's top three finishers. China topped the women's team standings with 4,318 points, edging South Korea on 4,271, to claim its first gold at Aichi-Nagoya 2026.
The event marked the first appearance of modern pentathlon at the Asian Games with obstacle replacing equestrian, and served as a preview of the event's new format for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.
Speaking about the difficulties she faced during the transition, Zhang said, "I had relatively little time to train for the obstacle event, so I needed to put in more effort. I am also a little older than some of the other athletes, which can have an impact on my physical condition."
"But I want to continue on this path and keep working hard to overcome these difficulties. I believe the difficulties are only temporary, and I will continue on this path," she added.
Wu, who had just celebrated her 20th birthday, said she was delighted to receive such a special gift.
"This gold medal would not have been possible without everyone's hard work. I am very happy to receive this gift as I turn 20. I still have a long athletic career ahead of me, and I hope this competition will be the starting point for me," she said.
China's modern pentathlon team has won at least one gold medal at every Asian Games since Guangzhou 2010.
Asked about the secret behind China's sustained competitiveness in the sport, Zhang said, "I don't think there is any secret. Our results in Asia are mainly down to the dedication and hard work of our coaches and athletes."
"Everyone has worked tirelessly for this gold medal. We train hard every day, perform our best in every competition, identify and address every problem, and that's how we achieve results like this," she added. ■
