China Sweeps Inaugural Half Marathon Race Walk Golds at Asian Games

China swept both gold medals on offer in the inaugural half marathon race walk at the Asian Games 2026, with Shi Shengji and Yang Liujing winning the men's and women's titles as athletics competition got underway in Nagoya.

Shi, still a teenager, delivered the biggest shock of the morning. He moved clear of Japan's Toshikazu Yamanishi, the reigning 20km world record holder, by the 10km mark and went on to win by more than four minutes in 1:23:32. Yamanishi settled for silver in 1:28:01, with South Korea's Choe Byeongkwang taking bronze in 1:28:35.

In the women's race, China's Yang Liujing and teammate Jiang Yunyan led from the gun, working together to control the pace. Yang held her nerve after Jiang picked up a penalty late on, crossing the line first in 1:33:40 for her maiden Asian Games gold. Kazakhstan's Kristina Morozova passed Jiang in the closing stages to take silver in 1:35:25, with Jiang settling for bronze just one second further back.

The half marathon, run over 21.0975km, replaced the 20km walk on the Asian Games program this year after World Athletics standardised senior road race-walking distances. The athletics program continues in Nagoya through September 29.