Chinese athletes won on Sunday nine out of the total 14 gold medals on the last day of an athletics test event for the Beijing Olympics.
Zhang Li highlighted the finals at Sunday night in the National Stadium, creating her personal best in the women's javelin throw at 62.09 meters at the four-day China Athletics Open, which ended Sunday.
Chinese sprinters Li Mingxuan and Han Ling won both the men's and the women's 200 meters races, at 20.91 and 23.60 seconds respectively.
However, China's national team, who said they hoped to create a new national record after the heat, dropped its baton in the men's 4x100 meters relay competition. The team has the gold and silver medalists, Zhang Peimeng and Hu Kai, of the men's 100 meters sprint.
Japan, China's arch rival in the men's 4x100 meters relay, lost the gold to the Sichuan team, also from China, which overtook Japan in the last step of the dash.
Qi Haifeng of China won the men's decathlon at 7,585 points. Li Xiangyu of China won the men's 800 meters at 1:48.39. China also won the women's 4x100 meters relay at 43.69. Sichuan of China won the men's 4x100 meters relay at 39.45.
Xie Limei of China won the women's triple jump at 14.39 meters. Xue Fei of China won the women's 5,000 meter at 15:42.95.
Five gold medals went to foreign athletes. Damian Paul Chopa of Tanzania won the men's 5,000 meters at 14:04.29. Lee Hup Wei of Malaysia won the men's high jump at 2.27 meters. Amna Bakhit of Sudan won the women's 800 meters at 2:06.44. Australia won the men's 4x400 meters relay at 3:03.71. Japan won the women's 4x400 meters relay at 3:33.23.
(Xinhua News Agency May 26, 2008)