Curtains fall on Asian Winter Games

HARBIN, China (AFP) — The Asian Winter Games closed in Harbin with host China dominating the medals table a year out from the Olympics and the Philippines among the tropical countries making history.

Tightly rehearsed dancers and a digital symphony orchestra kicked off the closing ceremony before athletes entered the 10,000-capacity stadium waving flags and snapping selfies.

A huge screen displayed images of futuristic ski slopes and the words “See you in Saudi Arabia,” the next Asian Winter Games hosts, and a logo for “Neom 2029.”

The 9th edition of the regional Games — but the first since 2017 — saw China win twice as many gold medals as nearest challengers South Korea, with Japan third.

China enjoyed success in speed skating and swept the women’s freeski golds despite missing Beijing Olympics hero Eileen Gu, who withdrew days before the Games with injury.

South Korea’s world-class skaters came out on top in the short track, winning two-thirds of the golds in the sport.

Naturalized Chinese short track skater Lin Xiaojun, the 2018 Olympic champion in the 1500m for South Korea, was the hosts’ sole individual champion, clinching the men’s 500m sprint.

A late clash between China’s Lin and South Korea’s Park Ji-won in the men’s 5,000m relay cost both countries gold, with Kazakhstan taking the win.

In figure skating, where the field also contained world and Olympic medalists, South Korea’s 23-year-old Cha Jun-hwan won the men’s singles gold.

That came hours after 18-year-old teammate Kim Chae-yeon beat out hot favorite Kaori Sakamoto of Japan for the women’s crown.

“Sakamoto is such an excellent skater,” Kim said, according to Yonhap News Agency.

“I wanted to beat Sakamoto at least once at some point, and it’s an honor to beat her at a big competition like this.”

North Korean figure skater Ryom Tae Ok, who competed under a unified Korean flag at the 2018 Pyeongchang Olympics, was second with Han Kum Chul in pairs skating.

Thailand’s Teekhree Silpa-Archa paid a poignant tribute to members of her Boston skating club who died last month in the Washington plane crash that killed 67 people.

“I wanted to take them on an international stage and do it for them,” she told AFP, having clutched photos of tragic teenage skaters Spencer Lane and Jinna Han.

Taiwan, Thailand and the Philippines all won Asian Winter Games medals for the first time.