China Sports Weekly (6.8-6.14)

BEIJING, June 14 (Xinhua) -- Here are the latest Chinese sports headlines from the past week:

1. Chinese Olympic champion Gong to join U.S. League One Volleyball

Chinese Olympic gold medalist Gong Xiangyu confirmed on Friday her signing with League One Volleyball (LOVB) for the upcoming season, marking her first overseas club venture.

The 28-year-old opposite hitter, a key member of China's 2016 Rio Olympic and 2019 World Cup winning teams, will join the league in the United States after completing domestic duties with the Jiangsu team at this year's Chinese National Games.

"LOVB represents an invaluable opportunity to experience a new volleyball culture," said Gong. "My primary goals are skill development, broadening my perspective, and enhancing my overall performance to better contribute to the national team," Gong said.

2. Olympic champion Zheng reaches first career grass-court semifinal

China's Olympic champion Zheng Qinwen reached the semifinals on grass for the first time in her career as she knocked out home sensation Emma Raducanu 6-2, 6-4 at the Queen's Club Championships here on Friday.

"I have better understanding while playing on grass and I know which shot I should use in different situations," said Zheng. "But I need to keep winning on grass and have more matches to play on the surface."

Zheng will face Amanda Anisimova on Saturday as the American defeated Emma Navarro 6-3, 6-3.

3. Olympic champ Sheng takes men's 10m air rifle bronze at ISSF World Cup in Munich

Olympic champion Sheng Lihao of China clinched the bronze medal in the men's 10m air rifle event at the ISSF World Cup here on Thursday, winning his second World Cup medal in the 2025 season.

Sheng, who won gold at the Lima leg in April, delivered a solid performance in the qualification round with a total of 635.3 points, leading the field into the final.

In the final, however, Russian shooter Ilia Marsov surged ahead with an impressive 106.9 points after 10 shots, 1.5 points ahead of Sheng, who was then overtaken by Norway's Jon-Hermann Hegg after the two following shots in the elimination stage. Despite the Paris winner's best effort to come back, he had to settle for the third place with 230.2 points, 0.9 points behind Hegg.

4. China men's volleyball team beats Serbia for first time in 15 years

World 24th-ranked China celebrated its head coach Vital Heynen's 56th birthday by breaking the curse to defeat Serbia in straight sets at the Volleyball Nations League (VNL) Xi'an leg on Thursday.

World No. 10 Serbia had previously won all ten meetings against China since 2010, including a 3-0 sweep in their most recent clash at the 2023 VNL.

Just 24 hours after suffering a 3-0 loss to world No. 6 Japan, a match in which Heynen said his team didn't play as a team and didn't show what they do in training, China bounced back strongly.

Meanwhile, it is undeniable that Serbia had come off a grueling five-set victory late the previous night. "The Serbians are tired," said Heynen. "We had the home advantage. They played after us yesterday."

5. China scores sole goal against Bahrain to end World Cup qualifying campaign

18-year-old forward Wang Yudong scored a late penalty for China as the home team beat Bahrain 1-0 here on Tuesday to finish its FIFA World Cup 2026 qualifying journey.

After losing to Indonesia and Saudi Arabia respectively last Thursday, China and Bahrain had been eliminated from the group and failed to qualify for next phase of Asian qualifier playoff tournament.

With nothing at stake, both teams had few chances to score in the first half.

China controlled the second half as Wang frequently penetrated through the left wing to create goalscoring opportunities, but his multiple shots were denied by Bahrain goalkeeper.

In the 93rd minute, the teenager finally bagged his first international goal as he converted the late penalty with composure, after Wang Ziming's cross forced a handball foul in Bahrain's penalty area.

China had nine points from three wins and seven losses in the World Cup qualifiers, ranking fifth in the Group C, three points ahead of Bahrain.■