World champion Gong concedes first defeat in 14 months

SHANGHAI - China's world No.1 ranked shot putter Gong Lijiao conceded her first defeat in more than 14 months as she finished second at the 2019 IAAF Diamond League Shanghai meet here on Saturday.

The 30-year-old, a two-time winner of the Diamond Prize, opened the competition with a 18.99 meters first round effort to take the leading position. But Chase Ealey of the United States achieved 19.58m in the second round to stun the jubilant local crowds.

Gong tried to turn the tables in the following rounds, but only saw her effort go in vain after bowing out at 19.44m to settle with the second place.

Aliona Dubitskaya of Belarus finish third at 18.78m.

It was the first defeat for Gong, who has collected four titles in her previous six appearances in Shanghai, following her third finish at the Birmingham IAAF World Indoor Championships last March.

The last time when the reigning world champion was defeated in outdoor field was in July 2017 as she took the second place in 17.53m in Neubrandenburg, Germany.