Tokyo Olympics: China Off To Strong Start With Three Gold Medals On First Day
TOPLINE Chinese shooter Yang Qian and weightlifter Hou Zhihui claimed the first two gold medals at the Tokyo Olympic Games with record-breaking performances Saturday, while fencer Sun Yiwen added a third later in the day, getting China’s Olympic campaign off to a strong start as it looks to challenge the U.S. Olympic team for the top spot in the medal table.
Yang claimed the first gold medal of the Tokyo Olympics on Saturday after pipping Russian shooter Anastasiia Galashina in the women’s 10-meter air rifle competition.
The 21-year-old Chinese shooter had barely scraped her way into the final eight and buckled once in the final with a score of 8.9 on one of her shots.
Despite the setback, Yang was able to secure gold with her final shot scoring 9.8, taking her total to an Olympic record of 251.8, while American Mary Tucker—ranked No. 2 in the world—crashed out of the final early, finishing in the sixth spot.
The second gold of the Olympics went to Hou, who won the women’s 49 kg weightlifting competition after lifting a total of 210kg—also a new Olympic record.
Sun gave China its third gold on the day, beating Ana Maria Popescu of Romania in the women’s épée in overtime by a score of 11-10.
Ray, S. (2021, July 24). Tokyo Olympics: China Off To Strong Start With Three Gold Medals On First Day. Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/siladityaray/2021/07/24/the-first-two-gold-medals-of-the-tokyo-olympics-go-to-china/?sh=bea2fb85e122