Chinese female star hurdlers (from left) Wu Yanni of Sichuab, Lin Yuwei of Fujian and Xia Sining of Hunan compete in the women's 100m hurdles at the National Games in Guangzhou, South China's Guangdong Province on November 19, 2025. Photo: Cui Meng/GT

The athletics competitions at the National Games reached the penultimate day as Guangdong local women's 100 meters hurdler Liu Jingyang stole show at the Guangdong Olympic Stadium in Guangzhou.

Competing against national teammates Wu Yanni of Sichuan, Lin Yuwei of Fujian, Xia Sining of Hunan, Liu delivered a 12.81-second finish in the highly anticipated women's 100 meters hurdles.

Wu, whose personal best is at 12.74 seconds, is still short from world elites as current world records was set in 2022 by Tobi Amusan of Nigeria at 12.12 seconds. However, her season best 12.90 seconds remains the best from a Chinese female hurdler. 

Wu has previously said that she aims to surpass the Asian record in the discipline, which was set by Olga Shishigina of Kazakhstan at 12.44 seconds in 1995. 

The Chinese national record in women's 100 meters hurdles is 12.64 seconds, achieved by Zhang Yu of Tianjin in 1993. 

In the women's 200 meters sprint, newly crowned domestic 100 meters champion Chen Yujie repeated her feat by clocking the fiercely competitive race in 23.02 seconds. 

The temperature at the Guangdong Olympic Stadium was 13 C on Wednesday night, which many athletes considered challenging.

Yang Hui, head coach of sprinter Wu Yanni, told the Global Times that initially Wu and him planned to challenge the national record, but the temperature made it unlikely.

The coach noted that overall preparations had gone well. 

"From a training perspective, her performance has been solid. Physically, she is in normal condition here in Guangzhou, but the only issue is the temperature. It's simply too cold," Yang told the Global Times.

"We were expecting her to deliver at an even higher intensity at the National Games, and even hoped she could go for the national record," he said. "Low temperature affects muscle performance and reduces the ability to produce power."

The day also witnessed badminton Olympic champion Jia Yifan, representing her hometown Hunan team, finished the women's doubles event in Shenzhen by pairing with Zhang Chi instead of national team partner Chen Qingchen.

Jia and Zhang defeated Guangdong's Li Yijing and Luo Xumin 2-0. She said she was overwhelmed with joy at securing another medal in her storied National Games journey.

"I'm just so happy," Jia told reporters on Wednesday. "I've now collected medals of every color at the National Games, and that's truly an honor."

Looking ahead to the next National Games, which will be hosted by Hunan, Jia admitted she has long imagined what it would feel like to compete at home.

"I joked that I hoped to sit on the rostrum next time, but honestly I prefer seeing myself on the court, looking the coolest and most confident," she said. 

"I've never experienced the feeling of playing in front of a true home crowd. So I really hope I can hold on until the next Games."

Reflecting on her overall experience at this edition of the National Games, Jia said the lighter pressure did not mean easier matches. 

"Most of the opponents I faced were younger than me ... Now I feel more composed and confident now than when I was younger."

In Zhuhai, where tennis competition is still on, Hong Kong male athlete Wong Chak-lam claimed a bronze medal, making it the first tennis medal for Hong Kong at the National Games history. 

"It's an honor to win the first-ever men's singles tennis medal for Hong Kong at the National Games. I've made history, and I hope I can perform even better at the Asian Games, the Olympics, and the next National Games," Wong said.

"I really enjoy competing at the National Games. The matches are always intense, and the players all know each other so well, it's a very special experience,'' Wong said. ''It's just a pity I fell a bit short at the end. I hope I can come back for the next National Games and achieve an even better result."