Two decades of dominance

Two decades after being launched in Sapporo, Japan, the return of Asia's version of the Winter Olympics to the site of the 1972 Games was once again dominated by an elite club of a few countries.

In fact, the Asian Winter Games, which wrapped up last week, didn't produce a new medal-winning country until the penultimate day of competition, when pairs figure skaters Ryom Tae-ok and Kim Ju-sik won bronze for the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.

The Games were once again dominated by Japan, South Korea, China and Kazakhstan, which finished first through fourth in the medal standings.

The small number of nations that were successful should be a cause for concern to the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA), considering that some 30 delegations were competing at Sapporo.

As the largest-ever Games in terms of participating delegations, the Sapporo Asiad also welcomed Australia and New Zealand as guests, although they were ineligible for medals.

Only 10 countries have won medals in eight editions of the Games.

As for gold, the number is down to seven, which includes three one-timers. DPR Korea's first and only gold came in the first Games in 1986, while Lebanon had one in 2003.

(China Daily 03/05/2017 page11)