Hong Kong’s rowing representatives Chiu Hin-chun and Winnie Hung Wing-yan both finished fifth in their respective lightweight single sculls finals at the 15th National Games, marking solid performances against strong mainland competitors.
Chiu, who also served as the flag bearer for the Hong Kong delegation at this year’s Games, started from Lane 1 in the men’s lightweight single sculls final.
He maintained fourth position over the first 500 meters and continued to press hard through the middle stretch in pursuit of the leading trio. However, in the final 500 metres, the gap widened, and Chiu eventually crossed the line in fifth place with a time of 5 minutes 06.19 seconds.
The gold medal went to Sichuan’s Gu Jiantao, who finished more than six seconds ahead of Chiu.
In the women’s lightweight single sculls final, Hong Kong’s Winnie Hung Wing-yan also placed fifth.
Starting from Lane 6, she fell slightly behind early on, ranking fifth at the 500-meter mark. Despite maintaining steady form throughout the race, she was unable to close the gap with the frontrunners and completed the 2,000-meter course in 5 minutes 37.06 seconds.
Hong Kong rower Winnie Hung Wing-yan at the 15th National Games.
The gold medal was claimed by Anhui’s Zhang Fangfang, who clocked 5 minutes 26.48 seconds.
