Ordos finale surge: China closes strong while Mongolia holds the overall crown

The last day of the Asian Championships in Ordos had that end-of-tournament electricity: China found an extra gear on home tatami and finished with two gold medals. Mongolia had set the pace earlier in the week, but day three showed how quickly the balance can swing—especially in the heavier women’s categories.

The headline moment came at women’s U78kg. Hongtao Wu looked composed and in control in the final against Yelyzaveta Lytvynenko of the United Arab Emirates, and that calm, structured approach carried her to gold. Behind her, Barchinoy Kodirova of Uzbekistan and Aruna Jangeldina of Kazakhstan earned bronze.

A strong finish can change the feeling of an entire championship.

China then doubled down at women’s +78kg, with Xinran Niu taking the title after beating Korea’s Hyeonji Lee in the final. Mongolia’s Adiyasuren Amarsaikhan and Uzbekistan’s Umida Nigmatova collected bronze, as China turned the closing session into a memorable home send-off.

In men’s U90kg, a 15-athlete field ended with Korea celebrating: Jonghoon Kim defeated China’s Hebilige Bu in the final, denying the hosts a potential third gold of the day. Kazakhstan’s Aidar Arapov and Bahrain’s Israpil Sagaipov took bronze.

The men’s U100kg category (14 competitors) delivered Bahrain’s gold as Said Sadrudinov overcame Dzhafar Kostoev of the United Arab Emirates. Uzbekistan’s Ernazar Sarsenbaev and China’s Fuchun Huang finished with bronze. In the heavyweight division (10 competitors), Uzbekistan’s Alisher Yusupov beat Korea’s Seungyeob Lee for gold, while China’s Haiyang Li and Uzbekistan’s Muzaffarbek Turoboyev shared bronze.

The medal table underlined how tight the race stayed until the end: Mongolia finished first with three gold, one silver and two bronze, ahead of Tajikistan with two gold and two silver. China placed third with two gold, one silver and six bronze, and the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea ended fourth. With Bahrain also leaving Ordos with two gold medals, the closing day reinforced a simple message—Asian judo is shifting, and it’s getting harder to predict.

Source: JudoInside