Asian Games 2023: Cheung Ka-long makes fencing history as Hong Kong win 2 gold, 5 bronze - day 1 as it happened
- Hong Kong’s Lam San-tung and Wong Wai-chun win city’s first gold of Games in men’s pairs final, Chen Sui-jin third in wushu all-round final
- Cheung Ka-long wins fencing foil final, with Haughey third in 50m breaststroke final before returning to help team take bronze in 4x100m free relay
It was a busy opening day in Hangzhou, with gold medals galore for the hosts on a packed first full day of competition.
Hong Kong’s athletes also wasted no time in making an impact, with rowers Lam San-tung and Wong Wai-chun claiming gold in the men’s pairs. Olympic champion fencer Cheung Ka-long later won the city’s first ever Asian Games fencing gold in the men’s individual foil final.
Fencing fans were denied an all-Hong Kong final after Ryan Choi Chun-yin lost in the last four, but he still earned a bronze for his city. Former women’s individual epee world No 1 Vivian Kong Man-wai also missed out on her final, but was on the podium nonetheless.
Cheung’s fellow Tokyo medallist Siobhan Haughey, fresh from breaking her own city record in the heats of the 50m breaststroke on Sunday morning, took a bronze in the final at night. She then came back half an hour later to help Hong Kong win bronze in the 4x100m freestyle relay final.
There had earlier been another bronze medal for Hong Kong’s wushu athlete Chen Sui-jin in the women’s taijiquan and taijijian all-round final.
Here’s how a busy start to the Asian Games unfolded.
Reporting: Nicolas Atkin, Tom Bell, Lars Hamer and Katie Giordano, with Josh Ball and Mike Chan in Hangzhou
