End of sporting action at Incheon 2014. The insidethegames live blog will return this evening at 18:00 for the Closing Ceremony

15:30 We will bring you more reaction on this, and everything else that has happened today during the Closing Ceremony. But for now it is goodbye!



15:28 After furious voting over the last three days, the Samsung MVP Award, for the best athlete of the Games, has gone to Japanese swimmer Kosuke Hagino!

He won four gold medals from 200m and 400m individual medley, 200m freestyle, and 4x200m relay races. He also obtained one silver medal in the 400m freestyle, and two bronze medals in 100m and 200m backstroke races. And perhaps most importantly, he was involved in that great rivalry with Sun Yan and Park Tae-hwan...

15:26 I am going to scoot off and close the blog now but, worry not, I will be back at approximately 18:00 for all the coverage from the Closing Ceremony. I will leave you with one final announcement...

15:25 Here is the final medals table. China pass the 150 gold target, thanks to a table tennis double earlier, while South Korea, in soft tennis, and Japan, in karate, also ensure final day victories. A good effort by Kazakhstan and Iran - who were each singled out for praise by Sheikh Ahmad earlier - and for Thailand and North Korea.

Further down, a final day gold sees Kuwait overhaul neighbours Saudi Arabia! I'm sure Sheikh Ahmad will be (secretly) happy with that one...



15:18 After 15 days and 439 sports, offering a total of 1,454 medals, Incheon 2014 is now over! 

Final gold medal of Incheon 2014 goes to Taiwan

15:10 Taiwan take the final gold medal of Incheon 2014! Ku Tsui Ping has outclassed her opponent, Kazakhstan's Yekaterina Khupovets, to take the gold medal in the women's karate kumite under 50kg division.

Ku Tsui Ping took up the sport in the sixth grade at primary school in Taiwan and her most memorable sporting achievement is winning a gold medal at the 2012 East Asian Cup.

Silver medalist Khupovets placed tenth in the -55kg class at Guangzhou 2010 and was  third a year later at the Asian Championships, also in Guangzhou. Bronze medals for Nasrin
Dousti of Iran and Jang So-young of South Korea.

14:59 A flurry of gold medals in the last hour - we will miss there periods of frantic and frenzied blogging!. The last one is underway now, in the women's karate...




14:54 And South Korea complete their clean sweep in soft tennis. Their women's team have beaten Japan in the final as Taiwan and China share bronze. 

Kuwait and Japan share spoils in karate

14:46 Gold medals coming through thick and fast now. Kuwait's Almutairi Rasheed took the men's karate kumite over 84kg title at the Gyeyang Gymnasium after defeating Japan's Hideyoshi Kagawa in a tight, point-for-point match before Rasheed moved to a 6-4 lead then quickly taking another point to give him a 7-4 win.

Rasheed, who was 20kg lighter than his Japanese opponent then walked the mat bearing the Kuwaiti flag.

That is Kuwait's third gold medal of the Games! Khalid Khalidov of Kazakhstan and Sengpheng Duangvilai of Laos each take bronze. 

14:39 Japan's Ryutaro Araga has earned the gold medal in the men's karate kumite under 84kg division at Gyeyang Gymnasioum taking down Kuwait's F F M Alnweam Hamad who was first in the -75kg class in Guangzhou, 2010 and now has taken the silver medal in the higher weight class.

Araga, whose father owns a number of karate dojos in Japan, is said to have first tried karate at age three. At age 19 he became the youngest winner of the All Japan Karate Championship. He came second at the 2012 World Championships in Paris and second in the last Asian Games in Guangzhou.

Jang Min-soo of South Korea and  Shakhboz Akhatov of Uzbekistan take the two bronze medals. 

Gold for Xu Xin in table tennis

14:33 So, that is six out of seven for China in table tennis, with only the mixed doubles slipping away. Another dominant performance by one of the most dominant teams in sport. 




14:28 Gold for world number one Xu Xin of China in the men's table tennis. He defeats younger compatriot Fan Zhendong 11-6  5 -11  11-13  11-7  12-10- 11-8 for his first championship singles title! A great effort by Fan but Xin was just two gold. 

I only managed to catch a couple of points at the end, but some devastating top spin rallies, with the left-handed pen-hold player Xu just that little bit stronger...

End of the OCA Press Conference

14:25 Right, apologies for the slightly garbled summary of this press conference, and I'm not sure most of the quotes are not word perfect, as I was scribbling furiously, but the gist is correct in all of them. 

And now, for the final time, it is back to the sport...

14:20 Sheikh Ahmad and the rest of the speakers then leave amid another flurry of photographs following those final five questions, with several on the OCA's supposed struggle to find hosts for major events. The President gives a strong defence, insisting that many countries are interesting in hosting, and reiterating confidence in Indonesia's ability to host the next edition of the Asian Games, in 2018. 

14:17 The press conference meanwhile is over. We have been kicked out for the Samsung MVP announcement coming up. Once again, the OCA President takes over when deciding who gets the final questions, with a bizarre exchange with the moderator. "We will have questions, from you, you, you and you," he says. "And ladies first is the custom in Asian, so you can go first."

"We have to follow the order in which hands were raised," the moderator tells him. Is that a rebuke? "Okay, we will have the custom in reverse, and the lady will go last," is Sheikh Ahmad's reply...

A question (from yours truly) on the situation regarding headgear following the withdrawal of the Qatar team. "Of course I am upset [by the situation]. "It has been approved in all sport and the Olympic. Everywhere there is the hijab, only in basketball it is not allowed. Remember, the hijab is not related to religion, but to culture, thousands of years old. There was no religion in that time."

"The Olympic and OCA Charter talks about fairness and equality. There is no reason to reject the hijab in any sport, on security and health grounds. It has been approved by handball, volleyball, football and others, and I don't; think there is a lot of difference with those sports and basketball."

He adds: "We have already discussed this with basketball. We are not in opposition to them and do not think it will be a big problem in the future."

Wei Jizhong then raises his hand to add, rather theatrically: "Wearing a hijab doesn't give an advantage to the athlete". 

A great picture from the karate...

14:10 A great picture here of an athlete from Kazakhstan having a rest during the karate...



Quick interlude for a sports update

14:01 We will return to the sport in a moment once the press conference has finished, but the karate medal matches are underway as is the men's singles table tennis final, between Xin Xu and Fan Zhendong. We are looked at 2-2 at the moment between the world number one and the teenage superstar

Can Fan produce a magnificent shock result today?

13:56 South Korean men's soft tennis team won the gold medal defeating Japan 2-0 in finals at Yeorumul Tennis Court today. Japan had to settle for silver, while China and Taiwan take the two bronze medals. 


Five different NOCs send letters about Incheon 2014 boxing

13:50 The issue of Indian boxer Sarita Devi is now being discussed. "As as an athlete, she had to respect the OCA regulation," Sheikh Ahmed, who is doing most of the speaking here, explains. "She feels sadness because she felt she deserved better, but she also killed the moment for the other athletes. I am happy she apologised. 

OCA honorary life vice-president Wei Jizhong, adds: "We decided to give this athlete a strong warning. We considered this had nothing to do with the Indian delegation. This is just a personal misbehaviour of the athlete."  

"We received letters from five different NOCs commenting about the boxing," Sheikh Ahmad chips in. He will not list them, or explain more, until a review has been completed. And also just to clarify, the inference I am taking is that Devi's apology was the one submitted on her behalf by the IOA Chef de Mission, so not a personal one by her. 

Sheikh Ahmad slams Indian cricket

13:40 Back in the press conference. And some strong words from Sheikh Ahmad about Indian cricket following the country's decision not to send any team to compete here, for the second successive Games.

"When we put a sport in a programme, we always wish to have the top athletes here," he says. "I'm sorry that the Indian delegate did not attend. We have to respect their own request.  The people in charge want money. This is not a sport, this is business.  For that, they are killing cricket, limiting the NOCs participating in cricket and killing the market. Sorry to say this as a sports fan, but this is the reality. This is why cricket is only a Commonwealth sport."

I feel that is going to cause a very strong reaction back in India...

Table tennis gold for Liu Shiwen



13:31 Before we deal with press conference specifics, a table tennis gold medal to bring you. Liu Shiwen has defeated Zhu Yuling 11-6 11-4 13-11 11-7 in the women's singles table tennis. This is the first gold medal Liu has earned in the Asian Game despite her status as the world's top ranked female player.

"I generally did well today. In team matches, I was too nervous. But I tried my very best to win during the final game. I didn't think of winning gold or scoring 4-0 before the match," Liu said afterwards. 

She goes home with two golds and a silver after, a team title and a loss in the women's doubles final. 

OCA Press Conference and table tennis updates

13:22 Lots of questions now on some of the major issues the OCA and Organising Committee have faced.

"We cannot say we are perfect 100 per cent," admits Sheikh Ahmad. "There were some doping cases and some other cases. This is normal, and with 9,700 athletes here there will always be some negatives, but we have only had six doping cases. We have been cooperating with security, police and legal authorities. Otherwise, everyone is smiling and I thing everyone was satisfied with the success of the Games. But also we are keen to reach to be better, and learn lessons for the future."

13:02 A lengthy overview from Sheikh Ahmad so far at the OCA press conference, about many aspects of the Games. 

He praises the "good Games" and the positive experience of "having the whole Asian sports family together", before thanking the organisers and everyone in Incheon for "a lot of good memories, tears, smiles and sharing".

"We had 14 world records and 80 Games records. Those numbers show the development of sport in this tournament. That does not show everything else that has been successful, in the Village, the venues, the Media Centre and more."

"We started with a question mark over North Korea. They are doing well on the medals table and we will see an official of North Korea attending the Closing Ceremony of the Games.

"I attended India v Pakistan in hockey and the Korea derby in football. Solidarity, success in Asia. This is the story, to tell the world we are not just the hotpoint of news and politics. We are proud to show our solidarity and unity."



12:52 Liu is closing in on gold in the women's singles table tennis as she wins the third game. Meanwhile, here's some reflections from Joo Sae-hyuk following the semi-final earlier...

"It was very difficult for me. I don't think his style matches with mine well, such as the beat. It is such a pity, because I was doing well, but lost so easily. Yes. It is my last [Asian Games], I am very thankful to the Federation and the coaching staff that helped me repay to my fans, and also to my family. Although I failed to achieve gold, participating in such a big and international tournament was a good experience, and will leave a good memory for me." - Home favourite Joo Sae-hyuk reflects on his disappointing singles loss to Xin Xu before confirming this will be his last Asian Games.

12:42 As we wait for the OCA press conference to start - it was meant to begin at 12:30 but is not expected to be too late this time around. And, right on cue, a flutter of photographs and some clapping as OCA chief Sheikh Ahmad Al Fahad Al Sabah enters the room...

Table tennis and karate update

12:37 And in the table tennis, success for, well, China, in the women's singles final so far. That was always going to be the case! World number one Liu Shiwen is two games to the good against Zhu Yuling, after taking them relatively comfortably 11-6, 11-4.

12:28 A couple of other results to bring you before we focus fully on the conference. Kuwait's F M F S Almutairi Rasheed is to meet Japan's Hideyoshi Kagawa for gold in the Men's karate kumite over 84kg division at Gyeyang Gymnasium in a few minutes after each won their semi-finals. So that is two Kuwait v Japan finals to come in karate.

12:20 We are heading to the OCA press conference now so there will be a bit of a lull on the blog for a while, but we will be back as soon as possible to bring you all the medals action, and the reaction from the press conference.

12:08 The Malaysian Chef de Mission did, incidentally, also eventually bring up the subject of the Malaysian wushu player, Tai Cheau Xuen, following the news that her appeal into her positive doping test and the stripping of her gold medal had been unsuccessful. 

Balogapal said that his personal "conviction is that the athlete did not intentionally cheat and take performance enhancing drugs, like athletes of the past, like Ben Johnson, have". But he adds that it is likely she unintentionally took a supplement with traces of sibutramine, the substance she tested positive for.

They are now unlikely to further appeal the decision. "We do not want to appear a sore loser," he says. "I think we should accept it." He does, however, promise to make a further comment once he has read the full CAS report in detail, that was only sent over late last night.  



11:59 Results are now in from those two table tennis semi-finals. And, as expected, two victories for China. Comfortable 4-0 wins for Xin Xu over Joo Sae-hyuk, and for Fan Zhendong over Chuang Chih Yuan. A particularly good performance there from Fan considering he lost a couple of matches earlier in the competition.

So we have two all Chinese finals to come now. The women's one first, and then the men's to conclude the day.

NOC updates from Japan and Malaysia

11:51 Balagopal also gives his views on the role of the media. "You are not here to kill us, but to help," That is good to know. 

11:40 And Malaysian Chef de Mission, Datuk Danyal Balagopal, has been giving a lengthy review of all things Malaysia at Incheon 2014. I think the technical term is a "media huddle", but it was more like a lecture, as he spoke for what seemed like hours on a wide range of issues.

To summarise, he is proud of many aspects of the team's performance, including the fact Nicol David has been selected on the Samsung MVP shortlist, as well as the improvement in sports like hockey and football. But he is disappointed with the performance in sepak takraw, and the lack of tactical nous shown in sports like sailing and cycling, as well as the complete lack of success in athletics, swimming and gymnastics. 

11:32 We've been a little distracted by some closing press briefings with several of the NOCs having ones this morning. Japan's deputy Chef de Mission Kozo Tashima has been providing another update on the situation with disgraced swimmer, Naoya Tomita, who has now returned to Japan after being kicked out of the team after being caught stealing a camera from a local photographer. 

"We are looking further into the incident," he said. "We believe that Tomita may have been and may be dealing with mental instability. There will be further inspection regarding his actions."

11:20 Brilliant stuff by the Chinese in the table tennis so far. Xin Xu has clinically dispatched Joo Sae-hyuk in the opening three games, 11-2, 11-5, 11-2. It's been disappointing from the South Korea, who was seen as a potential thorn in the side of the Chinese today, but simply sensational by Xu. The 24-year-old has won the last two ITTF Grand Finals, as well as many events on the world tour, but has never won a major championships singles event. Could this be his moment?

Fan Zhendong is having it tougher, but he has still gone 2-0 up over Chuang Chih Yuan. He is a raw talent, but some of his forehands are absolutely ferocious. 

Banned items at Incheon 2014

11:12 Here's a great sign outside the Media Centre of items which we are prohibited from taking through the security gate. My personal favourite is that well known danger, "plain eggs".

That said, the security seems, touch wood, to have been very effective here, and without being overbearing at all. We haven't had to do things like take our laptops out of our bags every time we go through security, or prove our electronic devices are working, which, although maybe necessary, gets quite irksome after a while...



Sporting action on day 15

11:05 Up next now in the Suwon Gymnasium are the two men's table tennis semi-finals, with two more Chinese players facing two established opponents in potentially tantalising clashes. Defensive chopper Joo Sae-hyuk of South Korea is up against world number one Xin Xu, while Taiwanese star Chuang Chih Yuan is facing the Summer Youth Olympic champion, Fan Zhendong.

It is a massive gamble by the Chinese team, selecting the teenager Fan over the likes of Ma Long and the world and Olympic champion, Zhang Jike - who combined to win the doubles yesterday. Will it pay off?

10:55 In karate, we have just had our two semi-finals in the men's under 84kg divison. Hamad Alnweam has beaten Hendro Salim of Indonesia 2-1 and will face Ryutaro Araga of Japan, who beat Nguyen Minh Phung of Vietnam, 6-4. The men's heavyweight over 84kg competitors are now on the mat, with all the finals to come later. 

10:46 It will be an all-Chinese table tennis final. Zhu Yuling beats Feng Tianwei of Singapore, 13-11, 13-11, 14-12, 11-8 to set up a clash with compatriot Liu Shiwen. All four games were close but Zhu was more clinical when it mattered. 

Over in the soft tennis, meanwhile, Japan have beaten Taiwan 2-0 in the second men's team semi-final to set up a gold medal clash with South Korea, while the host nation will be also represented in the women's final. They have beaten Taiwan 2-0 and will face either Japan or China in the final. These four nations have been utterly dominating the sport!

Highlights of Incheon 2014?



10:35 Later on today, we will hear the outcome of the Samsung MVP award to recognise the best performing athlete of the Games. But why not get the ball rolling with some insidethegames awards? What has been your sporting highlight of Incheon 2014?

Yes, there have been empty seats, failed drugs tests and controversial disqualifications and judging decisions. But there has also been awful lot of excitement and some simply magnificent sporting moments.

Topping the drama of the men's hockey, men's football and men's basketball finals will take some doing, with India, and South Korea (twice) getting the narrowest of wins over respective opponents Pakistan, North Korea and Iran. Or, if you cast your mind, back, there was the swimming, where Sun Yang, Kosuke Hagino and Park Tae-hwan engaged in those thrilling battles in the pool. 

World record breaking weightlifting success for North Korea, as well as that sensational late night men's team badminton final, were other moments that stood out for me, while the non-Olympic sports, like kabaddi, sepak takraw and cricket, also offered plenty of excitement. 

Was there something else that caught the eye? Let us know by commenting below!

China versus China looking likely in women's table tennis?

10:25 A 4-0 win for Liu Shiwen over Yang Hae-un in the table tennis. And Zhu Yuling wins the second game as well, also 13-11, to move 2-0 ahead of Feng Tianwei. We are heading for China v China in the final.

There are slight differences in the style of the female players to their male counterparts I feel. Unlike the men, who rely on huge top spin rallies, the women tend to stay closer to the table and engage in lightening quick block-block rallies. In a way it is better to watch, because the rallies tend to be slightly longer and easier to follow. There is not much at all between Zhu and Feng, but the Chinese player just seems to have the ability the raise her level in the business end of each game.  

10:16 I feel slightly like I've crashed a party, as I wander over to the transport desk in the Media Centre to ask about Closing Ceremony buses just as a birthday cake appears for one of the volunteers - the older man, second from the right, I think... Not the best photo I've ever taken, but it's good to see them all still smiling on what (I hope!) is their last day of duty. 



10:09 Moving indoors to table tennis over at the Suwon Gymnasium, and the two women's semi-finals have begun. China will be disappointed to have only won four out five gold medals in the sport so far, with the mixed doubles slipping away yesterday, as North Korea took gold. They will be furious if they don't win both singles events today.

They've started well though. To the disappointment of the home crowd, world number one Liu Shiwen is already 3-0 up on Yang Hae-un of South Korea in the best of seven game contest. The match I'm watching is much tighter. Zhu Yuling edged the first game 13-11 over Chinese-born Singaporean rival Feng Tianwei. It is 9-9 in the second.

What is soft tennis?

09:58 The game was developed in Japan, but it is South Korea who have won every single gold medal so far here in Incheon, and they look set to continue that trend as they have just completed a 2-0 over China in the men's team semi-final! SIngles gold medal winner Kim Hyeongjun earned the second of those two points.

Either Taiwan and Japan await in the final. 

09:52 There's less differences than I was expecting between soft tennis and the regular form of the game, with the court size and general feel identical. The main difference is the use of much softer rubber balls, hence the name.

As the game uses these soft balls certain unique features have developed, such as a lighter and more flexible racket with a lower string compression. Unique techniques and game maneuvering also make the best use of the softness of the ball. You can hit the ball hard with a good and comfortable feeling and will find it easy to control the ball. 

The other main difference is the scoring system. Unlike tennis, which takes the set-method, soft tennis takes the game-method. Call is determined as zero, one (one point), two (two points), three (three points), and four (four points) and is counted from the service side. The calls for the game counts are the same. The win in a set is by taking four points before the opposition. However, if both sides are tied at three points, ( i.e. 3:3), then it is called a deuce in which the first point after that shall be called an "advantage" and a consecutive point shall give a win in the game. Singles matches consist of seven sets, doubles consists of nine sets by principle. Wins in four sets and five sets are needed to win in a seven set, and nine set games respectively.



09:45 We will also be reviewing all the action over the last 15 days, but for now we will turn our attention to the sport, for my television in the Media Centre has suddenly burst into life, and the soft tennis has begun. 

On day 15?

09:37 Before we turn our gaze to the sport just getting underway, a reminder that there is also an OCA Press Conference scheduled for 12:30, although, as ever, that is subject to change. We hope to bring you some coverage of that on the blog as well, however, including all the inevitable reaction to the sixth positive doping to emerge from these Games, involving Chinese hammer throwing gold medal winner, Zhang Wenxiu.

You can read our article on her here, our report of day 14 here (Defeat in basketball followed by triumph in volleyball for Iran at Incheon 2014) and our report on OCA plans to develop a common policy on headgear at the Asian Games, here. 

Also, check out our day 15 photo gallery here. 

09:28 We can now confirm that China, South Korea and Japan will finish first, second and third in the final medals table. Barring Iran winning every gold medal today, plus five silvers, which isn't going to happen, Kazakhstan will finish fourth and Iran fifth. There is still all to play for in the battle for sixth place however, although with few chances for India, North Korea or Qatar today, it is looking like Thailand will win that duel, unless Taiwan, who have chances in all three sports being contested, can spring a surprise. 

Further down, it's great to see 37 of the 45 NOCs here represented on the medals table, including Cambodia, who won a historic first Asian Games gold medal yesterday, as well as Sri Lanka, who earned their first gold for 12 years. 



09:23 There are just seven sets of medals to be won across three different sports today. Three of them will come in karate, where we have the men's under 84kg and over 84kg, and the women's under 50kg contests in kumite karate. Action on the mat starts in a few minutes.

We also have the two team finals in soft tennis and then, the one people are most looking forward to, the semi-finals and then the final of the table tennis singles. 

09:15 That means it is the final insidethegames live blog. Well...sort of. Our plan is to keep the blog going until all the events had finished, expected to be mid afternoon sort of time, before opening up a new one a couple of hours later for the Ceremony. 

09:10 It's been 15 days of largely pulsating sporting action, with some magnificent moments tinged with an entertaining number of farcical and bizarre elements, and a few controversial moments as well, but today is the final day of action at the Incheon 2014 Asian Games ahead of the Closing Ceremony this evening. 

09:00 Good morning and welcome back to the insidethegames live blog for the fourteenth day of action here at the Incheon 2014 Asian Games.