The Chinese judo squad delivered a standout performance at the 2026 Asian Judo Championships, securing two gold medals, one silver, and six bronze across 14 weight classes held in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, on April 19. Competing with a full roster of nine male and nine female athletes, China’s team showcased depth and resilience in a tournament that served as a key qualifier for the upcoming 2026 Asian Games in Nagoya, Japan.
Wu Hongtao and Niuxinran emerged as the nation’s top performers, each claiming gold in their respective divisions. Wu Hongtao triumphed in the women’s -78 kg category, overcoming an early deficit in the final to secure victory via ippon with a decisive seoi-nage in the closing seconds. Her opponent, South Korea’s Yoon Hyun-ji, had led through much of the match before Wu executed a flawless counterattack after gripping lapel and sleeve control.
In the women’s +78 kg class, Niuxinran dominated her path to gold, winning all five matches by ippon, including a semifinal victory over Kazakhstan’s Irina Zabulina and a final against Mongolia’s Altantsetseg Mönkhbat, whom she subdued with a powerful osoto-gari after just 1 minute and 45 seconds. Niuxinran’s performance marked her first senior continental title, building on her bronze medal at the 2024 Asian Championships in Kyrgyzstan.
China’s silver medal came courtesy of men’s -90 kg competitor Li Zhenyu, who lost a closely contested final to Japan’s Sosuke Muraoka by waza-ari after golden score. Li had previously defeated Iran’s Saeid Mollaei — a 2020 Olympic silver medalist — in the quarterfinals with a tactical counter to Mollaei’s signature uchimara, showcasing improved grip-fighting under pressure.
The six bronze medals were earned by: Wang Yixuan (women’s -52 kg), Chen Long (men’s -66 kg), Zhang Weilin (men’s -81 kg), Zhao Mingzhu (women’s -63 kg), Sun Feilong (men’s -100 kg), and Liu Jiaqi (women’s -57 kg). Notably, Chen Long rebounded from an opening-round loss to defeat two higher-ranked opponents via repechage, while Zhang Weilin secured his medal with a textbook hadaka-jime against Uzbekistan’s Diyorbek Urozboev in the bronze medal match.
The tournament, hosted at the Yunusobod Sports Complex in Tashkent, attracted over 300 athletes from 41 nations and served as a critical evaluation point for national teams ahead of the 2026 Asian Games. According to the International Judo Federation (IFF), the event awarded ranking points contributing to Olympic qualification pathways for the 2028 Los Angeles Games, with top-eight finishers earning valuable world list positioning.
China’s head coach, Zhang Yadong, praised the team’s adaptability during a post-competition press briefing, noting that several athletes adjusted strategies mid-tournament based on opponent tendencies observed in early rounds. “We saw improved transition defense and better use of kumikata variations,” Zhang said. “Wu Hongtao’s comeback final and Niuxinran’s explosive starts were products of specific preparation we’ve refined since the Grand Slam in Paris last month.”
The results mark a significant improvement from China’s performance at the 2024 Asian Championships, where the team won one gold, two silvers, and four bronzes. This year’s medal distribution — particularly the dominance in the heavyweight women’s divisions — highlights a strategic focus on developing power judokas capable of executing high-amplitude throws under fatigue, a trend noted by performance analysts at the Japanese Institute of Sports Sciences.
Looking ahead, the Chinese judo program will shift focus to the World Judo Tour events in Budapest and Tokyo later this spring, using the Asian Championships as a benchmark for refining techniques ahead of the Asian Games qualifiers in September. The next major checkpoint for the team is the continental Olympic qualification tournament scheduled for January 2027 in Almaty, Kazakhstan, where continental berths for Paris 2024 cycle athletes will be finalized — though with the 2026 Asian Games now approaching, immediate priorities center on Nagoya preparation.
For fans wishing to follow the team’s progress, the Chinese Judo Association provides updated training camp schedules and athlete profiles through its official WeChat account and website, while match replays from the Tashkent event are available on the IFF’s YouTube channel with commentary in English, and Mandarin.
What stood out most from China’s campaign in Tashkent wasn’t just the medal count, but the consistency across weight classes and the ability to win in multiple ways — through technical precision, physical dominance, and tactical patience. As the squad looks toward Nagoya and beyond, this performance offers a clear signal: China’s judo program is not only recovering but evolving.
Stay tuned to Archysport for continued coverage of Asia’s leading martial arts athletes as they prepare for the next chapter on the continental stage.
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