Hangzhou Asian Games | Security tightened ahead of closing ceremony

China competes in the team free artistic swimming event during the Hangzhou Asian Games on October 8, 2023.
| Photo Credit: AFP

Subways were closed and security was tightened around Hangzhou’s Olympic stadium ahead of the Asian Games closing ceremony on October 8 as China grabbed one of the last gold medals to add to a record-breaking haul at the multi-sport event.

After more than two weeks of competition, China’s second highest leader, Premier Li Qiang, will attend the evening ceremony starting 8 p.m. (1200 GMT) but the content has otherwise been kept under wraps.

With athletes energised by warm support from home fans, China topped the medals table for an 11th successive Games, taking an artistic swimming title on the final day.

The hosts’ 201st gold left them two better than their previous best of 199 at the 2010 Guangzhou Asian Games.

The very last gold went to Taiwan’s Gu Shiau-shuang, who beat Kazakhstan’s Moldir Zhangbyrbay in the karate, defending the women’s 50 kg kumite title she won in Jakarta in 2018. Taiwan’s 19th gold medal equalled their best ever haul achieved at the Bangkok Games in 1998. Japan took the other title on Sunday, edging Macau in the men’s team kata karate competition.

Organisers said 12,407 athletes from 45 nations competed in 40 sports at the Hangzhou Games, which were delayed for a year due to COVID-19.

With shiny, new stadiums and crowds free to roam between venues, China’s first multi-sport event in the post-COVID era has been a far more festive occasion than last year’s Beijing Winter Olympics which were held under extreme health protocols.

Yet the Games have been overshadowed by political tensions, including a dispute with the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) over North Korea’s flag.

WADA banned the flag at all major sporting events, outside the Olympic and Paralympic Games, in 2021 after deeming that North Korea had failed to implement an effective testing programme.

But the flag has been displayed throughout the Games with the backing of the Olympic Council of Asia, triggering a threat of sanctions from WADA.

The OCA confirmed on Sunday the dispute was still not resolved.

“We are in touch with them and we are trying to resolve this issue hopefully in the next couple of days we will be able to get through to what WADA wants,” acting OCA director general Vinod Kumar Tiwari told reporters.

“Technically we have had one of the finest Asian Games ever,” said Vinod Kumar Tiwari.

“We have had 97 Games records, 26 Asian records and 13 world records, so the standard has been very, very high and we are very happy with it.”

Nine sports, among them boxing, break dancing and tennis, served as qualifiers for Paris.

Japan were a distant second in the final medals table with 52 golds, down from 75 at Jakarta in 2018, and South Korea were third on 42.

India’s total medal haul of 107 was their best showing ever, with their archers and shooters in particular excelling.

North Korea returned to international competition after four years of isolation and came top in weightlifting.

China has now hosted the Asian Games three times after Guangzhou 2010 and Beijing 1990, and OCA honorary life vice-president Wei Jizhong, who has attended 11 Asiads, rated it the most successful.

“We don’t rank Asian Games against other Games on who was the best,” said Wei, who is Chinese.

“But in terms of the Games in China, I give it a mark of 99. Why 99? There is always room for improvement.”

(With inputs from AFP)