NAGOYA, Japan, Sept. 25 (Xinhua) -- Thailand's Puripol Boonson and China's Chen Yujie broke Asian Games records to win the men's and women's 100 meters on Friday, capping a night of seven athletics finals in Nagoya.
The 20-year-old Thai clocked 9.90 seconds, lowering the 9.91 he had run in the semifinals. Both times beat the previous Games record of 9.92 set by China's Su Bingtian in the 2018 Jakarta Games. Oman's Ali Al-Balushi took silver in 10.04, while compatriot Malham Al-Balushi claimed bronze in 10.11. Defending champion Xie Zhenye finished seventh in 10.30.
"My goal is to break the Asian record, I would like to see a Thai person set an Asian record," Boonson said after the race.
Chen, 17, won the women's 100 meters final in 11.06 seconds, cutting 0.09 seconds off the Games record set by Sri Lanka's Susanthika Jayasinghe in 2002. Singapore's Veronica Shanti Pereira was second in 11.21, with Bahrain's Edidiong Odiong third in 11.33. Chen's victory kept the title in Chinese hands after Ge Manqi's win in Hangzhou three years ago.
"Although I've gone from being a challenger to a defending champion, holding on to an Asian Games title will be difficult. I want to keep the mindset of a challenger and set my sights on the World Championships and the Olympics. I hope women's sprinters from China and across Asia can achieve better results on those stages," Chen said.
The home crowd had a gold medal to celebrate in the women's pole vault. Japan's Morota Misaki cleared 4.55 meters to improve her national record and beat China's Asian record holder Niu Chunge, who took silver with 4.50m. India's Baranica Elangovan won bronze with 4.15m. It is the first time in Asian Games history that an athlete from outside China has won gold in the event.
Japan also took the top two places in the women's heptathlon, with Yuri Tanaka winning on 5,920 points ahead of Nanaka Kajiki on 5,673.
China's Song Jiayuan won the women's shot put at the Asian Games on Friday, with teammate Zhang Linru taking silver as China claimed the title for a 13th consecutive edition. Song, the Paris Olympic bronze medalist, had finished second to compatriot Gong Lijiao at the previous Games in Hangzhou.
"We've inherited the competitive spirit of the older generation, who taught us a great deal," Song said. "Techniques have advanced, and I've switched to the rotational technique. But I think the support of our coaches and team officials is the main reason Chinese women's shot putters have performed so well in Asia."
Bahrain's Birhanu Balew retained his Asian Games men's 10,000 meters title on Friday, crossing the line in 28:27.51 to finish 1.87 seconds ahead of India's Gulveer Singh. Singh, a bronze medalist in Hangzhou three years ago, took silver in 28:29.38, while Bahrain's Albert Kiptoo claimed bronze in 28:34.38. China's Wang Wenjie finished fourth in 28:38.14.
Uzbekistan's Sukhrob Khodjaev won the men's hammer throw with 74.38m, while defending champion Wang Qi of China finished sixth. ■
