Denmark's Viktor Axelsen beat Chen Long to win Olympic badminton gold, becoming the first non-Asian man to win the singles title since 1996, but China continued their successes in other sports.
World No 2 Axelsen beat defending champion Chen 21-15, 21-12 as he followed in the footsteps of compatriot Poul-Erik Hoyer-Larsen, the Atlanta Games champion and the last winner from outside Asia.
Despite the loss, China created breathing room at the top of the medal table with victories in shooting, track cycling, gymnastics and weightlifting.
Zhang Changhong set a world record in the men's 25-meter three-position rifle to beat Russian Sergey Kamenskiy for the gold as China tightened its grip of the lead in the medals tally with 29 gold.
China also have 17 silver and 16 bronze heading into the final few days of the Olympics. The United States are second with 22 gold, 25 silver and 17 bronze, while hosts Japan are third with 17 gold, six silver and 10 bronze.
Other winners for China were the women's cycling sprint team of Bao Shanju and Zhong Tianshi, gymnast Liu Yang in the rings and women weightlifters Li Wenwen and Wang Zhouyu.
Denmark's Viktor Axelsen is the first non-Asian man to win the badminton singles title since 1996. REUTERS
Zhong Tianshi
Liu Yang
