Record year for Chinese athletes

The year 2002 has been a good one for Chinese athletes who set a total of 29 world records and won 110 world champion titles during the peri...

The year 2002 has been a good one for Chinese athletes who set a total of 29 world records and won 110 world champion titles during the period.

Chinese athletes not only maintained their dominance in the continent, finishing top in the Asian Games medal tally for a sixth straight time at busan, South Korea, they extended their winning streak to the winter Olympics bagging the first- ever gold medal to score a historic breakthrough.

Among the outstanding achievements by the Chinese in 2002 were the world records set by 17 athletes and five teams, including seven records in Olympic events.

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Of these records, 17 were set in weightlifting, eight in shooting, two in short-course swimming, and one each in cycling and under-water swimming.

Since October 1949, Chinese athletes have established or surpassed a total of 1,087 world records, Xinhua news agency quoted the state general administration of sports as saying.

Chinese won 110 world titles in World Championships and World Cup meets last year. Of the titles, 42 were won in Olympic events, which represented 38 per cent of the total titles won.

Among the world titles are 18 in shooting, 17 in weightlifting, 15 in speedskating, 13 in under-water swimming, 10 in diving, seven in marine modelling, six in wushu, five in gymnastics, three in short-course swimming, two each in chess and air modelling, and one each in athletics, yachting, windsurfing, fencing, field hockey, badminton, table tennis, figure skating, acrobatic gymnastics and parachuting.