Did China Dominate the Speed Climbing Relay Golds at the Chengdu World Games?

Chengdu, Aug 16 (NationPress) The host nation, China, concluded the climbing events at the World Games on Saturday by clinching gold medals in both the men's and women's speed relay finals, achieving an impressive tally of five out of the six golds available.

This relay format, introduced for the first time at a significant international competition, features two athletes per team. The second climber can only commence once the first one activates the timing pad at the summit, with the total time determining the outcome. The Chengdu competition also marked the establishment of the initial world records for both men's and women's categories in this discipline, according to reports from Xinhua.

The men's competition showcased some of the sport's elite competitors. American Samuel Watson, the reigning individual world record holder, alongside teammate Zachary Hammer, faced off against China's Chu Shouhong and Long Jianguo, who had recently secured individual golds, during the semifinals. Despite Watson's clean run while managing a shoulder injury, Hammer's slip advanced the Chinese pair to the finals.

In the final round, they faced another American duo, 18-year-old Michael Hom and 17-year-old Logan Schlecht. Both teams performed flawlessly, yet it was Chu and Long who triumphed with a time of 10.26 seconds, each adding a second gold to their collection.

"It was a challenging day. We've been competing for two days already, so I was very fatigued. Today's victory was a mix of strength and luck," Chu remarked. Long expressed that he felt more at ease entering the finals due to the strong performance of another Chinese team in the qualifiers. "This is a team triumph," he noted. "This medal carries more weight than our individual achievements."

Watson and Hammer regrouped to secure bronze against Indonesia's Veddriq Leonardo and Alfian Muhammad Fajri, setting a world record of 10.06 seconds in the process.

"My shoulder still hinders me, particularly with some of the upper movements, especially the final left shoulder pull," Watson confessed. "However, I'm generally optimistic about returning to my peak form. The injury is manageable," he added.

Following the Paris Olympics, the men's speed climbing scene has increasingly become a contest between China and the United States. Nonetheless, Saturday's medalists all conveyed mutual respect for their opponents.

"The atmosphere in our climbing community is genuinely positive," Long stated. "My English isn't perfect, but every time I see Samuel and the others, I always greet them. I know Watson has been dealing with an injury, so we didn't get to witness his best form. I hope he can make a strong comeback soon."

"I personally analyze his performance data," Schlecht laughed, gesturing toward Chu. "All of the Chinese athletes are exceptionally strong, and they're always formidable contenders on the field. It's an honor to compete against them."

On the women's side, China's Deng Lijuan and Zhou Yafei showcased their dominance by breaking the world record three times in a single day, ultimately lowering it to 13.28 seconds in the semifinals before overcoming compatriots Qin Yumei and Zhang Shaoqin to secure gold.

When asked about their record-setting performance, Deng remained poised. "We were aware of it, but that wasn't our primary focus," she said. "We concentrated more on executing each move cleanly and fulfilling our roles."