The inaugural Asian U23 Athletics Championships concluded with a commanding performance by the host nation, China. Fourteen countries finished the four-day competition with at least one medal, but China topped the table with a total of 52 podium finishes.
Held for the first time in Ordos, located in China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, the championships, featured athletes born 2004-06, were successfully staged as a new addition to the Asian Athletics Association's official calendar. China led the medal standings with 23 gold medals, while Japan claimed seven titles and Uzbekistan finished with five.
One of the standout performances of the championships came from Xinfeng Yu in the men's 400 metres hurdles. The 21-year-old equaled the Chinese national record of 48.68, originally set by Debin Gong last year.
In the men's long jump, Zhuofan Yu secured the title with a first-round leap of 7.87 metres, narrowly defeating two athletes who both finished with jumps of 7.85 metres. The men's triple jump, however, was a one-sided contest as 2024 World U20 bronze medalist Yinglong Ma captured gold with a winning mark of 17.11 metres.
Although China failed to win a medal in the men's 100 metres despite having three finalists, it comfortably won the men's 4x100 metres relay in 38.38 seconds, finishing half a second ahead of runner-up Hong Kong. India also impressed in the relay events, winning the women's 4x400 metres relay and the mixed 4x400 metres relay while reaching the podium in four of the five relay finals.
Uzbekistan's Jonbibi Hukmova, already an Asian U20 champion, completed a women's 400-800 metres double at the U23 Championships. China's Yuan Li also claimed two gold medals, winning both the women's 1,500 metres and 5,000 metres.
Malaysia's Mohamed Azeem Fahmi, who earned his country a 100 metres bronze medal at the 2023 Asian Games in China, went one better this time by winning the men's 100 metres title in 10.17 seconds. Fahmi also played a key role in Malaysia's bronze-medal performance in the men's 4x100 metres relay.
