China surge to top of team rankings with dominant display on third day of Asian Wrestling Championships

China's women were in superb form on day three of the Asian Wrestling Championships as they won four of the five available gold medals ©United World Wrestling

China’s women proved too strong for the rest of the competition at the Asian Wrestling Championships as they secured four of the five available gold medals on day three at the Aspire Dome in Doha, Qatar.

The Chinese side were in commanding form and their performance saw them leapfrog Japan into top spot on the team rankings.

Few would now bet against them going on to clinch the overall title.

Xuechun Zhong got China off to the perfect start as she got the better of North Korea’s Yong Mi Pak in their 53kg gold medal bout, cruising to a dominant 10-0 win to take her second crown of the season following victory at the Paris Grand Prix in February.

Japan claimed their only gold of the day as Anri Kimura breezed to a comfortable victory against Han Kum-ok of North Korea in a contest that didn’t get further than the first period.

Kimura signalled her intentions from the off, not allowing her opponent any respite and she managed to secure the win by pinning Han early on.

China then truly came to the fore as Xiaojuan Luo, who was in superb touch throughout the tournament, began a streak of three consecutive golds for her team by ousting Japan’s Yoshimi Kayama in the 60kg division.

Xiluo Zhuo Ma continued the impressive display from her nation as she sealed gold in the 63kg weight class in what was the most enthralling bout of the night.

Asian Games champion Feng Zhou's victory capped off a superb day for the Chinese team in Doha ©Getty Images

She came up against Japan’s Kanako Murata, who looked to have taken victory before Xilou caught her with a late attack with just seconds remaining to ensure she would finish top of the podium.

Asian Games champion Feng Zhou, one of the most stellar names at the championships in the Qatari capital, capped off an excellent day for the Chinese wrestlers as she demonstrated her prowess in the 75kg once more with a trouble-free 11-0 win over Elmira Syzdykova of Kazakhstan in the final.

Zhou looked in arguably the best form of her career so far on her way to sealing her third major title in eight months following her victory in Incheon and her triumph at the prestigious Klippan Women’s tournament in February.

The event in Doha continues tomorrow with women’s wrestling at 75kg and Greco-Roman at 59kg, 71kg and 85kg.