Asian Para Games: China dominates track events, Sumit puts Indian on top

Hosts China dominated the Para athletics events at the Hangzhou 2022 Asian Para Games collecting 46 gold and 122 medals during six days of competition in the Huanglong Sports Centre Stadium.

Chinese athletes picked more gold medals than second place Iran (21) and third place India combined (18). Eighteen nations topped the podium at this year’s Asian Para Games – including a first-ever gold to Kazakhstan in Para athletics with Dastan Mukashbekov in the men's shot put F36.

China was also responsible for half of the 12 world records set in Hangzhou – three of them coming from the same athlete. 

Wen Xiaoyan repeated her hat-trick of golds from the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games winning the women’s 100m T37, 200m T37 and long jump T37 finals with record-breaking performances. 

First she improved in 23 centimetres her own long jump-world record from the Dubai 2019 Worlds to win the long jump T37 (5.45m) on day two (24 October) in Hangzhou.

The day after Xiaoyan triumphed in the 200m (26.18) improving in 0.40 the world record set by her at Tokyo 2020. She then came back to the track less than 24 hours later to finish first in the 100m on Thursday (26) clocking 12.59.

"People came to cheer for us and I felt the warm atmosphere. When I was running I was watching the screen and hearing the people cheer, [that] made me keep sprinting. I did feel that power," Xiaoyan said after claiming her third gold.

Yiting Shi broke her own world record in the women's 200m T36, with a time of 28.17, to win her first Asian Para Games gold medal. The Chinese picked Paralympic gold in this event at Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020.

Sun Pengxiang broke his own record in the men’s javelin F41 by nearly 90cm, throwing 48.46. 

“I feel excited and thrilled to compete here at home. It feels definitely different to compete here on home ground. It gives me that advantage and confidence to win. I would like to thank all the fans for their support,” Pengxiang said.

Mi Na was the other Chinese star to break their own world record in Hangzhou. She threw 38.73 in the women’s discus F37 final improving in 23cm her previous mark from Tokyo 2020.

It was Na’s seventh gold medal at the Asian Para Games, as she has won the discus event at all four editions of the Games.

Spectacular Sumit

India made history in Hangzhou with a best-ever campaign at the Asian Para Games and Para athletics accounted for 55 of the country’s total of 111 medals. 

Indian athletes grabbed five gold medals on day three of Para athletics (25 October) with men’s javelin F64 and F46 finals as the highlights. 

Sumit Antil continued his impressive winning streak breaking his own javelin F64-world record on his third throw (73.29). The Asian Para Games title was the only gold medal still eluding the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic champion and Paris 23 world champion.

Sundar Singh Gurjar’s 68.60m-throw broke Sri Lankan Dinesh Priyantha’s previous world record of 67.79m in his sixth and final attempt in the javelin F46. The event provided India’s second clean sweep in Hangzhou with Rinku taking silver and Ajeet Singh bronze.

The first podium sweep came in the men's discus throw F54/55/56 with Neeraj Yadav, Yogesh Kathuniya and Muthuraja claiming gold, silver and bronze respectively.

Iranian Vajiheh Houshmand smashed the world record in the women's discus throw F43 adding 2.02m to her own record and setting 28.92m as the new mark.

More milestones

Elsewhere in the track, Saudi Arabia’s Nour Mohammed S Asana's gold medal in the men's 400m T64 event was the 500th gold medal awarded in athletics in history of the Asian Para Games.

Di Dongdong’s victory in the men's 100m T11 handed China its 200th Asian Para Games gold medal in athletics. 

There were more milestones for China as Liu Cuiqing won her 11th gold medal at the Asian Para Games, in the women's 400m T11 – following her triumphs in the 100m and 200m T11 events in Hangzhou.

Paralympic champion Haider Ali claimed Pakistan's first medal at the 4th Asian Para Games: gold in the men's discus F37. Ali has won four of Pakistan's five gold medals at the four editions of the Asian Para Games.

Thailand’s five-time Paralympic champion Pongsakorn Paeyo was another star to top the podium in China. His gold in the men's 400m T53 was his sixth at the Asian Para Games.

Complete results and all Para athletics medallists from Hangzhou 2022 can be found here.