Nagoya, September 30 (Daily Kiran) : China’s 17-year-old Yang Siki clinched a silver medal in women’s shortboard at the 2026 Asian Games held in Nagoya. In a closely contested final, she was ultimately outperformed by Japan’s Mirai Ikeda, who took home the gold medal.
Yang started strong, scoring 4.00 and 3.57 points on her first two waves, establishing an early lead. However, Ikeda, despite facing smaller waves, skillfully found scoring opportunities and pulled ahead with several impressive maneuvers.
In the second half of the competition, Yang struggled to find additional waves, ending the final with a score of 11.64 to Ikeda’s 7.57. Japan’s Minami Nonaka secured the bronze medal.
Reflecting on her performance, Yang expressed satisfaction, stating, “Overall, I feel I performed quite well. I believe I am more mature this time, and my game shows more consistency. I can feel my progress.”
Despite her commendable performance, Yang felt disappointment for not winning gold, shedding tears after the match. “I was waiting for a good wave, but it never came. It’s quite frustrating because I felt I had a chance to win the title,” she admitted.
Yang has already qualified for the 2024 Paris Olympics, becoming the first Chinese surfer to secure an Olympic berth.
In the men’s shortboard final, Japan’s Kanoa Igarashi, the silver medalist from the Tokyo Olympics, won gold by defeating Indonesia’s I Made Pazar Ariyana. The bronze medal went to Jayward Elsiso from the Philippines.
Surfing made its official debut at the Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya, with both men’s and women’s shortboard events serving as qualifiers for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.
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