Chinese shot putter Gong Lijiao throws world-leading 20.39 meters

Gong Lijiao wins the women's shot put on 20.39m at the Chinese National Athletics Championships in Chongqing on June 27, 2021. (Xinhua/Tang Yi)

World champion Gong Lijiao of China throws this year's shot put world-leading distance of 20.39 meters at the Chinese National Athleteics Championships.

CHONGQING, June 28 (Xinhua) -- Reigning world champion Gong Lijiao threw this year's shot put world-leading distance of 20.39 meters at the last competition day of the 2021 Chinese National Athletics Championships on Sunday.

She threw 19.90 meters in her first attempt and successfully crossed the 20-meter mark with her fourth shot. With a familiar roar, Gong threw the world's best result this year on her sixth attempt.

This saw her win the championship's women's shot put event, marking the perfect end to her warm-up ahead of next month's Olympic Games in Tokyo.

In the women's 200m final held earlier that day, Ge Manqi from Fujian won gold in 22.98 seconds. In the women's 800m, Yunnan's Wu Hongjiao claimed top spot in 2:12.34.

The women's 1,500m title went to Anhui's Wang Chunyu. Xu Shuangshuang from Shanghai won the women's 5,000m gold in 15:55.64, while in the women's triple jump, Tan Qiujiao from Guangdong claimed gold with a leap of 13.98 meters.

After winning the men's 800m final on Sunday morning, Lyu Dezhu from Guangxi took the men's 1,500m crown in 3:43.36 later that day.  ■