Changwon 2026 Day 2: China shatter world record on golden day

It was only the second day of the Changwon 2026 World Shooting Para Sport Championships, but the action continued to captivate as two world records were broken in the team events on Friday.

After an opening day packed with thrills and emotion, the excitement continued in Korea at its third WSPS World Championships.

Chinese domination

China’s pistol athletes continued their impressive run as Huang Xing, the two-time Paralympic champion in the P3 - mixed 25m pistol SH1, and Dang Yuhong, a member of the Shaanxi Disabled Shooting Team, combined for 472.1 points to set a new world record en route to gold in the P6 - mixed team 10m air pistol.

Xing (239.6) and Yuhong (232.5) prevailed over reigning world champion Aeekyung Moon (225.0) and Jeongdu Jo (241.0), who combined for 466.0 points – a score that would also have broken the previous world record, but the Chinese pair went even better.

The previous record of 465 was held by four-time Paralympic champion Sareh Javanmardi and Ali Galavi of Iran, set in Novi Sad in July.

Much like their pistol athletes, China’s rifle athletes maintained their impressive run on the second day at the Changwon International Shooting Range.

In the R11 - mixed team 10m air rifle prone SH2 final, Wang Ruo and Gao Jianxiong, a medallist at China’s National Disabled Shooting Championships, combined to score 504.6 points for gold.

They prevailed over USA’s Paralympian Madison Champion and Ben Hays, a 2023 national champion, who shot 503.9 points in a tight final.

Imagen

Magnificent Malenovsky

China’s impressive run on the day was halted by the seasoned Slovakian pair of Veronika Vadovicova and Radoslav Malenovsky, who claimed gold with a world record effort of 508.3 points in the R10 - mixed team 10m air rifle prone SH1.

Vadovicova (256.0) and Malenovsky (252.3) bettered their own record of 507.6 set in Novi Sad. The duo also set a qualification world record of 638.7.

Lima 2023 champion Zhang Cuiping (253.8) this time paired with Paralympic star Dong Chao (252.7) to score 506.5, but it was not enough to stop the Slovakians. 

Ukraine’s Al Ain 2022 champion Iryna Saltykova and Andrii Doroshenko managed 441.0 points for bronze.

For Malenovsky, the Changwon 2026 Worlds have already become a memorable campaign as he claimed his second gold and world record in as many days.

“We had an amazing qualification. After Novi Sad, we knew that it will be hard to get the score again, but we exceeded it,” said the 39-year-old, who won the R1 gold on the opening day.

“Veronika was shooting like a god. In the final, she repeated it, while I was struggling a bit but still, we managed to get the gold.

“Our bond is strong, if one of us shot a bad shot then the second one helps getting the higher score. I’m glad that today it was enough because she (Veronica) was doing a great job.”

Vadovicova, the Slovakian great with five Paralympic golds, added: “I like to shoot nearby him (Malenovsky) – because he is calm. We are great team here.”

You can relive the action from Changwon by watching the livestream, while results are available here.

Competition at Changwon 2026 continues with three finals on Saturday.