The 13-year-old Chinese swimmer Yu Zidi set an Asian Games record as she scorched to gold on Sunday’s first full day of competition. The schoolgirl, who turns 14 next month, took the women’s 200m butterfly crown in a Games-record 2min 05.08sec. It was the first major title of her young career, less than two years out from the Los Angeles Olympics. “It was only so-so,” a smiling Yu said after receiving her medal. Yu Zidi competes in the women’s 200-metre individual medley heats at the Asian Games in Tokyo, Japan.…
Tag: Sport
Chinese robot runs 100m sprint quicker than Usain Bolt’s world record
Chinese smartphone maker Honor’s self-developed humanoid robot Lightning ran the 100m in 9.32 seconds, beating the human world record, China’s state broadcaster reported. The humanoid reached a peak speed of 14.5 meters per second during a preparatory test event for the second World Humanoid Robot Games, which begin on Saturday. This performance surpassed the 9.58sec men’s 100m world record set by Usain Bolt 17 years ago at the World Athletics Championships in Berlin. This story will update The Guardian
Plenty of players but no grassroots: can China ever grow into a footballing giant?
Michael Owen, a man who once quipped he had never drunk tea or coffee, isn’t known for his adventurous palate. Safe to assume, then, that the former England striker was out of his comfort zone sipping Roxburgh rose juice and eating chilli-wrapped rice noodle rolls during his recent visit to south-west China’s Guizhou province. The 2001 Ballon d’Or winner dusted off his boots for a match in Rongjiang county, the birthplace of viral amateur football league Cun Chao, also known as the Village Super League. Scoring twice in a 4-3…
Fifa’s failure to agree World Cup TV deals in China and India a headache for Infantino
When Fifa expanded the World Cup from 32 to 48 teams, it was in the hope that countries such as India and China, with their 2.7 billion residents, would qualify rather than countries such as Cape Verde and Curaçao, whose combined population of about 700,000 barely equals a district of a megacity such as Mumbai or Shanghai. What the governing body did not account for was that, with the 2026 tournament a month away, there would be no broadcasting deals done with the two Asian giants to ensure fans there…
Humanoid robots show rapid advances as they race past humans in Beijing half-marathon
Dozens of Chinese-made humanoid robots showed off their fast-improving athleticism as they whizzed past human runners in a half-marathon race in Beijing on Sunday, having lagged far behind a year earlier. The race’s inaugural edition last year was riddled with mishaps, as many robots struggled to get off the starting line, and most were unable to finish. The champion robot recorded a time of 2 hours 40 minutes, comfortably ahead of its machine rivals, but more than double the time of the human winner of the conventional race. The contrast…
Chinese ice dancers under investigation after holding toy missile at event – video
The International Skating Union (ISU) is investigating after two Chinese ice dancers were shown with what appeared to be a toy ballistic missile during a grand prix figure skating event. TV footage showed Ren Junfei and Xing Jianing sitting with a large toy in the shape of a missile labelled ‘DF-61’ as they were waiting for their scores in the ‘kiss and cry’ area at the Cup of China on Saturday. The toy was briefly held up by Ren, Xing and a coach, then placed across Xing’s lap. The Guardian
Chinese ice dancers under investigation after holding toy missile at event
The International Skating Union is investigating after two Chinese ice dancers were shown with what appeared to be a toy ballistic missile during a grand prix figure skating event. TV footage showed Ren Junfei and Xing Jianing sitting with a large toy in the shape of a missile labelled “DF-61” as they were waiting for their scores in the “kiss and cry” area at the Cup of China on Saturday. The toy was briefly held up by Ren, Xing and a coach, then placed across Xing’s lap. The DF-61 is…
No 10 says talks happening ‘at pace’ across government to lift ban on Maccabi Tel Aviv fans attending Aston Villa match – live
From 2h ago No 10 says talks happening ‘at pace’ across government to get Maccabi fans ban lifted Downing Street has said that discussions are happening “at pace, across government” to resolve the ban on Maccabi Tel Aviv fans attending the Europa League match in Birmingham. At the morning lobby briefing, a No 10 spokesperson told reporters: Conversations began on this last night. You will have seen the West Midlands police and crime commissioner has asked police and Birmingham’s safety advisory group to immediately review the decision. Culture secretary Lisa…
Revealed: Major NBA brands linked to forced labor in China
When Enes Kanter Freedom appeared on a basketball court in his Boston Celtics jersey and a pair of trainers emblazoned with the slogan “Free Uyghur”, the reaction from Beijing was swift. “Literally at the half-time, they cancelled every Celtics game on television [in China] for the rest of the year,” the basketball player tells the Bureau of Investigative Journalism (TBIJ) and the Guardian. That game, in October 2021, marked a turning point in his career. “That’s when the NBA got really angry at me,” says Freedom. Freedom, who has long…
Robots run, punch and score at World Humanoid Robot Games in China – video
China is hosting the inaugural three-day World Humanoid Robot Games in Beijing as it looks to showcase its advances in artificial intelligence and robotics. In total, 280 teams from 16 countries are taking part in the event, where humanoids compete in sports such as kickboxing, football and athletics. The Guardian