Asian Games 2023 Medal Tally: Hosts China surge ahead atop table as India stretch medal count to five

Hosts China are off to a spectacular start in the Hangzhou Asian Games, taking their medal tally to double digits in less than 24 hours since the event was declared open.

The 19th edition of the Asian Games officially got underway in the south-eastern Chinese city of Hangzhou with a glittering opening ceremony at the Olympic Sports Centre Stadium on Saturday.

Chinese president Xi Jinping was among those present at the 80,000-seat venue and it was he who declared the Games open on Saturday in a ceremony that had plenty of lights and sound but went with eco-friendly options instead of firecrackers. The organisers decided to introduce concepts such as 3D fireworks and a digital torchbearer.

Also present during the opening ceremony was International Olympic chief Thomas Bach.

Here’s the updated medal table as of Sunday

China currently are enjoying a sizeable lead atop the medal tally, having won 17 medals so far (12 gold, 2 silver, 3 bronze) — eight more than South Korea, who have won eight (4 gold, 3 silver, 1 bronze). Japan are third on the list with five medals (1 gold, 3 silver, 1 bronze).

India, whose promotional campaign for the Games promises a ‘sau paar‘ (100-plus) medal tally, have won five medals so far including three silver and two bronze. The rowing pair of Arjun Lal Jat and Arvind Singh (men’s lightweight double sculls) won silver on Sunday after the shooting trio of Mehuli Ghosh, Ramita Jindal and Ashi Chouksey opened India’s account with a silver in the women’s 10m air rifle team event.

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Jindal would later go on to win an individual bronze in the women’s 10m air rifle event.

Union Sports Minister Anurag Thakur was originally scheduled to attend the opening ceremony, but ended up cancelling his trip to China after three Wushu players from the north-eastern Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh were denied visa by Beijing.

The Hangzhou Asian Games were originally supposed to take place in 2022, but got delayed by a year due to the COVID pandemic. The Asian is the second major sporting event that China is hosting since the Beijing Olympics in February last year.