SportsPosted at: Sep 26 2026 11:07PM


Asian Games Day 7: China reach men's football semifinals, Japan suffer table tennis shock

Nagoya (Japan), Sep 26 (UNI) China reached the men's football semifinals at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games for the first time in 28 years with a 3-0 win over Thailand on Saturday, while surprise upsets in table tennis reshaped the men's singles draw.
China also showed its strength in diving, sweeping two gold medals on the opening day of competition.

In football, Peng Xiao forced an own goal in stoppage time of the first half, before Hu Hetao doubled the lead early in the second; substitute Zhang Yuning sealed the 3-0 win with a late
strike. China will face South Korea in the semifinals at Nagai Stadium in Osaka on
September 30.

"Throughout the match, we showed a very high level in terms of running, competing, attacking and defending. We are very happy to bring this kind of joy and optimism to Chinese football. Now that we have reached the last four, we will continue to give our all and strive to go further," said China head coach Antonio Puche.
Table tennis delivered a major upset for the host as Japan's Tomokazu Harimoto, ranked fourth in the world, was beaten 4-3 by Iran's Noshad Alamiyan, ranked 344th, in the men's quarterfinals. Japan's Sora Matsushima also fell 4-2 to China's Lin Shidong. The two players had already helped Japan secure the men's team title.
China's star paddlers Sun Yingsha and Wang Chuqin, the defending mixed-doubles champions and Olympic gold medalists, were upset by compatriots Kuai Man and Lin Shidong in the final, losing 4-0 and falling short of a third straight title.
In the individual events, Sun Yingsha beat South Korea's Joo Cheon-hui 4-2 to reach the women's semifinals, while Wang Chuqin ousted Chinese Taipei's Feng Yi-hsin 4-0 to advance to the men's semifinals. Wang Manyu also reached the women's semifinals.
With diving getting underway earlier in the day, China made a flying start by sweeping both synchronized events, as Chen Yuxi and Lu Wei triumphed in the women's 10m platform and
Wang Zongyuan and Zheng Jiuyuan topped the men's 3m springboard.
In track and field, China's Su Wen won the men's triple jump with a leap of 17.42 meters, breaking the 36-year-old Asian Games record of 17.31 set by compatriot Zou Sixin at the 1990 Beijing Games, according to Xinhua.
Thailand's Puripol Boonson, the men's 100-meter champion, broke the Asian Games record in the 200 meters in 20.10 seconds. The 20-year-old lowered the 12-year-old mark by 0.04 seconds.
Seventeen-year-old Chen Yujie, the women's 100-meter champion, also remained on course for a sprint double after easing into the 200-meter final.
The men's marathon was won by Japan's Ichitaka Yamashita in 2:10:49, and Bahrain's Shitayew Habte claimed the women's race in 2:27:31. In men's shot put, Iran's Mohammadreza Tayebise finished first in a Games record of 20.81m, winning his country's seventh gold medal.
Weightlifting saw several world records. DPRK's Ri Won Ju won the men's 70kg title, setting records in the clean and jerk (198kg) and total (349kg), while Japan's Masanori Miyamoto took silver with a 154kg snatch, also a world record.
In the 75kg class, Indonesia's Rahmat Erwin Abdullah claimed gold with world records in the clean and jerk (206kg) and total (366kg).
In basketball, South Korea defeated Japan 75-70 to claim the women's gold, while China beat Chinese Taipei 77-64 to take the bronze.
UNI BM
Tags: #Asian Games Day 7: China reach men's football semifinals# Japan suffer table tennis shock
More News

Uganda storms into Cup semifinals at World Rugby SVNS 3 Africa Qualifiers

26 Sep 2026 | 11:03 PM

Kampala, Sep 26 (UNI) Host Uganda reached the Cup semifinals of the World Rugby SVNS 3 Africa Qualifiers after securing two wins on the opening day of the tournament here on Saturday. .

see more..

Asian Games Basketball roundup: South Korea holds off Japan for women's basketball gold

26 Sep 2026 | 11:00 PM

Nagoya (Japan), Sep 26 (UNI) South Korea held off a late Japanese rally to win the women's basketball gold medal 75-70 at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games here on Saturday, while China
beat Chinese Taipei 77-64 for bronze.

see more..

Asian Games Athletics roundup: Su breaks 36-year-old record as marathon titles go to Japan, Bahrain

26 Sep 2026 | 10:56 PM

Nagoya (Japan), Sep 26 (UNI) China's Su Wen broke a 36-year-old Asian Games record to win the men's triple jump on Saturday, as two more Games records fell on a day that began with marathon golds for Japan and Bahrain.

see more..

Five SCR personnel part of Indian kabaddi teams that win Asian Games gold

26 Sep 2026 | 10:50 PM

Hyderabad, Sep 26 (UNI) Five South Central Railway (SCR) personnel were part of the Indian men's and women's kabaddi teams that won gold medals at the 20th Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan, bringing laurels to Indian Railways.

see more..

India batting coach Sitanshu Kotak backs veteran all-rounder Jadeja's Cricket World Cup chances

26 Sep 2026 | 10:37 PM

Thiruvananthapuram, Sept 26 (UNI) India's preparations for the ICC Men's Cricket World Cup 2027 start taking shape with the upcoming ODI series against West Indies, through which the side will look to figure out their strongest possible squad going into the tournament.

see more..