China Sports Weekly (1.18-1.24)

BEIJING, Jan. 25 (Xinhua) -- Here are the latest Chinese sports headlines from the past week:

1. China finishes runner-up at AFC U23 Asian Cup

China finished runner-up at the AFC U23 Asian Cup following a 4-0 defeat to Japan in the final in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia on January 24, delivering the country's best-ever performance at the AFC U23 Asian Cup.
China had made history in the semifinal by beating Vietnam 3-0 to reach the U23 Asian Cup final for the first time. Before the final, they had gone unbeaten with a perfect record in the tournament and had not conceded a single goal.

2. China unveils squad for Milan-Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics

China's Winter Sports Administrative Center unveiled on January 23 a 124-athlete squad for the coming Milan-Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games, adding to a four-member squad for ski mountaineering announced earlier this month by the Mountaineering Administrative Center.

The roster features a stellar lineup of China's top athletes, including reigning Olympic champions Su Yiming, Gu Ailing, Xu Mengtao, Gao Tingyu, Fan Kexin and Sui Wenjing/Han Cong.

3. Wang Xinyu makes fourth round for first time in Australian Open

China's Wang Xinyu upset 13th seed Linda Noskova on January 24 in a match disrupted by severe heat in Melbourne as she powered into the Australian Open's last 16 for the first time in her career.

Wang continued her aggressive form in the tournament to record a 7-5, 6-4 win in one hour and 27 minutes of playing time, meaning China will be represented in the last 16.

In the women's draw, Yuan Yue produced a resilient effort but was eventually outclassed by Iga Swiatek in the first round while Zhang Shuai also suffered an early exit. Bai Zhuoxuan was taken out by world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka in the second round.

In the men's draw, Shang Juncheng slumped to a straight-sets defeat against Botic van de Zandschulp in the second round. Bu Yunchaokete and Zhang Zhizhen exited in the first round while Wu Yibing and Shang Juncheng bowed out of the second round.

4. Sui/Han finish runners-up at ISU Figure Skating Four Continents Championships

China's Olympic champions Sui Wenjing and Han Cong came second in the pairs event at ISU Figure Skating Four Continents Championships here on January 24.

American pair Alisa Efimova and Misha Mitrofanov took the gold with a total score of 205.34 points after earning 133.49 in free skating.

The Chinese duo collected a total of 200.99 after scoring 124.97 in free skating. They led the short program on 76.02 points on Thursday.

The veterans announced their competitive return last year and will participate in the upcoming Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics.

5. China claims men's and women's doubles titles at India Open

China won gold medals in both men's and women's doubles at badminton's India Open on January 18.

Liang Weikeng and Wang Chang took the men's doubles title, rallying to beat Japan's Hiroki Midorikawa and Kyohei Yamashita 17-21, 25-23, 21-16. It was their second India Open championship, having previously won in 2023.

The women's doubles title went to China's Liu Shengshu and Tan Ning, who defeated Japan's Yuki Fukushima and Mayu Matsumoto 21-11, 21-18 for their second title of the season.■