Three Asian Games Records Fall As China and Japan Each Win 19 Golds

Photo Courtesy: Maria Dobysheva

The end of the Asian Games has approached us. Japan and China tied atop the leaderboard with 19 gold medals apiece while Japan won 52 total medals to China’s 50.

Rikako Ikee of Japan and Kim Seoyeong of South Korea each broke Games Records on night six in Jakarta and China’s 4×100 medley relay swam the fastest time in the world for 2018, beating out the Americans and British from earlier in the summer.

Live Results

Women’s 50 Free

Japan’s Rikako Ikee may have clinched herself swimmer of the meet honors by taking down world record holder Liu Xiang of China in the 50 free final. Ikee swam a 24.53 to win her sixth gold medal of the meet and eighth medal overall. Ikee was also slightly faster than what she swam at Pan Pacs earlier in the month.

Liu finished with the silver at 24.60 while China’s Wu Qingfeng (24.87) finished with the bronze medal.

Both Ikee and Liu were off their country’s national records that they hold.

Japan’s Mayuka Yamamoto (25.45), Singapore’s Amanda Lim (25.47), Ting Quah (25.48), Korea’s Kim Minju (25.81) and Hong Kong’s Stephanie Au (25.86) also swam in the final.

Rikako Ikee, JPN, 24.53, Games Record
Liu Xiang, CHN, 24.60
Wu Qingfeng, CHN, 24.87
Mayuka Yamamoto, JPN, 25.45
Amanda Lim, SGP, 25.47
Ting Quah, SGP, 25.48
Kim Minju, KOR, 25.81
Stephanie Au, HKG, 25.86

2018 Virtual World Championships

Sarah Sjostrom, SWE, 23.74, Europeans
Pernille Blume, DEN, 23.75, Europeans
Cate Campbell, AUS, 23.78, Commonwealth Games
Ranomi Kromowidjojo, NED, 24.21, Europeans
Simone Manuel, USA, 24.22, Pan Pacs
Bronte Campbell, AUS, 24.26, Commonwealth Games
Taylor Ruck, CAN, 24.26, Commonwealth Games
Mariia Kameneva, RUS, 24.40, Europeans

Men’s 50 Breast

Japan’s Yasuhiro Koseki proved he is still one of the best breaststrokers in the world with his 50 breast gold medal on Friday night at the 2018 Asian Games in Jakarta. Koseki swam a 27.07, slightly slower than Yan Zibei’s Games Record of 27.06 from the prelims.

Koseki already won gold medals this week in the 100 and 200 breast, and he just completed the hat trick with a gold here in the 50.

Koseki is also the first Japanese swimmer to win the 50 breast at the Asian Games. Kazakhstan has the most gold medals in the event with Vlad Polyakov (2006) and Balandin (2014) winning two of the three gold medals.

Koseki finished ahead of Yan (27.25) and Dmitriy Balandin (27.46) in the final as it was a much slower pace than it was in the heats.

China’s Sun Jiajun (27.65), Uzbekistan’s Vladislav Mustafin (27.72), Macau’s Chao Man Hou (27.91), India’s Sandeep Sejwal (27.98) and Japan’s Daiya Seto (28.00) also swam in the final.

Yasuhiro Koseki, JPN, 27.07
Yan Zibei, CHN, 27.25
Dmitriy Balandin, KAZ, 27.46
Sun Jiajun, CHN, 27.65
Vladislav Mustafin, UZB, 27.72
Chao Man Hou, MAC, 27.91
Sandeep Sejwal, IND, 27.98
Daiya Seto, JPN, 28.00

Women’s 400 Free

China’s Wang Jianjiahe clinched the distance hat trick with a gold medal and new Asian Games Record of 4:03.18. Wang already claimed gold medals this week in the 800 and 1500 free finals and she won her fourth gold medal of the meet in the 400, adding to her gold in the 4×200 free relay.

Wang finished three full seconds ahead of teammate Li Bingjie (4:06.46) who won the silver medal. Li was well off her 4:01 she swam last summer that still stands as the Asian Record. Both Wang and Li are 16-years-old.

Wang moved up to third in this year’s Virtual World Championships after all the major international meets this summer. Wang has a ways to go to catch American Katie Ledecky and Australian Ariarne Titmus but she is still only 16 so she has room to grow.

Japan’s Chihiro Igarashi (4:08.48) won the bronze medal for her fourth total medal of the meet.

Wang Jianjiahe, CHN, 4:03.18, Games Record
Li Bingjie, CHN, 4:06.46
Chihiro Igarashi, JPN, 4:08.48
Waka Kobori, JPN, 4:11.69
Kim Jinha, KOR, 4:16.84
Ching Gan, SGP, 4:17.86
Ho Nam Wai, HKG, 4:18.77
Katii Tang, HKG, 4:19.91

Virtual World Championships

Katie Ledecky, USA, 3:58.50, Pan Pacs
Ariarne Titmus, AUS, 3:59.66, Pan Pacs
Wang Jianjiahe, CHN, 4:03.18, Asian Games
Simona Quadarella, ITA, 4:03.35, Europeans
Ajna Kesely, HUN, 4:03.57, Europeans
Leah Smith, USA, 4:04.23, Pan Pacs
Holly Hibbott, GBR, 4:05.01, Europeans
Anna Egorova, RUS, 4:06.03, Europeans

Men’s 1500 Free

It was not as fast as it has been in the past, but China’s Sun Yang won his third straight gold medal in the 1500 at the Asian Games, just dipping under 15 minutes with a 14:58.53. Sun is well off his Games Record of 14:35 from 2010, and even further from his world record of 14:31 from 2012. Sun is 26, and with the addition of the 800 to the Olympic schedule, Sun has hinted at dropping the 1500 for the 800 by 2020.

He was in a race with Vietnam’s Huy Nguyen, but Sun pulled away for the gold. Nguyen will get the silver at 15:01.63, winning Vietnam’s third medal in swimming at the Asian Games, and their first silver. It is also their first medal in men’s swimming at the Games.

China’s Ji Xinjie (15:06.18) finished with the bronze medal.

Sun Yang, CHN, 14:58.53
Huy Nguyen, VIE, 15:01.63
Ji Xinjie, CHN, 15:06.18
Shogo Takeda, JPN, 15:17.13
Ayatsugu Hirai, JPN, 15:24.26
Aflah Prawira, INA, 15:24.59
Advait Page, IND, 15:29.96
Huang Guoting, TPE, 15:36.52

2018 Virtual World Championships

Florian Wellbrock, GER, 14:36.15, Europeans
Mykhailo Romanchuk, UKR, 14:36.88, Europeans
Gregorio Paltrinieri, ITA, 14:42.85, Europeans
Jordan Wilimovsky, USA, 14:46.93, Pan Pacs
Jack McLoughlin, AUS, 14:47.09, Commonwealth Games
Zane Grothe, USA, 14:48.40, Pan Pacs
Daniel Jervis, GBR, 14:48.67, Commonwealth Games
Mack Horton, AUS, 14:51.05, Commonwealth Games

Women’s 200 IM

In a battle of the two fastest swimmers in the world for 2018, it was Korea’s Kim Seoyeong who broke the Games Record with a 2:08.34 for the gold medal in the 200 IM on the last night of the 2018 Asian Games. Kim finished ahead of Yui Ohashi of Japan who was the silver medalist at 2:08.88. Ohashi swam faster at Pan Pacs with a 2:08.16, so she will hold on to the “virtual gold medal” from the Virtual World Championships.

Ohashi and Kim were the only swimmers to break 2:09 at a major meet this summer.

Japan’s Miho Teramura won the bronze medal with a 2:10.98 as she added a second from her Pan Pac time that was a 2:09.86 earlier this month.

China’s Zhou Min (2:11.42) finished off the podium in fourth place.

Kim is the first Korean gold medalist in this event since 1982 when Choi Yun-Hui won the gold medal. It is also Korea’s 22nd gold medal in swimming at the Asian Games.

Kim Seoyeong, KOR, 2:08.34, Games Record
Yui Ohashi, JPN, 2:08.88
Miho Teramura, JPN, 2:10.98
Zhou Min, CHN, 2:11.42
Yang Chang, CHN, 2:13.68
Jamie Yeung, HKG, 2:17.63
Ressa Dewi, INA, 2:18.62
Natalie Kan, HKG, 2:18.82

Virtual World Championships

Yui Ohashi, JPN, 2:08.16, Pan Pacs
Kim Seoyeong, KOR, 2:08.34, Asian Games
Sydney Pickrem, CAN, 2:09.07, Pan Pacs
Siobhan O’Connor, GBR, 2:09.80, Commonwealth Games
Miho Teramura, JPN, 2:09.86, Pan Pacs
Ella Eastin, USA, 2:09.90, Pan Pacs
Katinka Hosszu, HUN, 2:10.17, Europeans
Ilaria Cusinato, ITA, 2:10.25, Europeans

Men’s 4×100 Medley Relay

The Chinese men closed out the Asian Games with an exclamation point as they went toe to toe with Japan in the final of the men’s 4×100 medley relay as they swam the two fastest times in the world this year. Xu Jiayu (52.60), Yan Zibei (58.86), Li Zhuhao (50.61) and Yu Hexin (47.92) clinched the gold for China with a 3:29.99 which was faster than the United States and Great Britain did to win their respective championships.

It was not easy though as Japan finished in a fighting battle with the silver at 3:30.03. Ryosuke Irie (52.53), Yasuhiro Koseki (58.45), Yuki Kobori (51.06) and Shinri Shioura (47.99) had the second fastest time in the world this year, lowering their time from Pan Pacs when they finished second to the Americans.

Kazakhstan won the bronze with a 3:35.62 thanks to a stellar breaststroke leg from Dmitriy Balandin (58.88).

China, 3:29.99, Games Record (Xu, Yan, Li, Yu)
Japan, 3:30.03 (Irie, Koseki, Kobori, Shioura)
Kazakhstan, 3:35.62 (Kaskabay, Balandin, Mussin, Varakin)
Singapore, 3:37.68 (Zheng, Khoo, Schooling, Chua)
Korea, 3:37.93 (Lee, Moon, Chang, Yang)
Indonesia, 3:38.18 (Sudartawa, Nathaniel, Sutanto, Sidiq)
Chinese Taipei, 3:41.52 (Chuang, Lee, Chu, An)
Hong Kong, 3:44.61 (Lau, Lang, Lim, To)

2018 Virtual World Championships

China, 3:29.99, Asian Games
Japan, 3:30.03, Asian Games
United States, 3:30.20, Pan Pacs
Great Britain, 3:30.44, Europeans
Australia, 3:30.52, Pan Pacs
Russia, 3:32.03, Europeans
Brazil, 3:32.16, Pan Pacs
Germany, 3:33.52, Europeans

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