India enjoy golden day, Japan win women's soccer

NAGOYA, Japan: India enjoyed one of its most successful days at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games on Friday, collecting six gold medals across hockey, boxing, wrestling and archery to move into fifth place in the overall medal standings.
The biggest triumph came in women’s hockey, where India defeated defending champions China 1-0 in the final to claim their first Asian Games gold in the event since 1982. Lalremsiami scored the decisive goal, while goalkeeper Savita Punia made a crucial save from a penalty stroke to preserve India's lead. The victory also secured India a direct qualification berth for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games.
India's boxers contributed three gold medals. Lovlina Borgohain, celebrating her 29th birthday, defeated China's Bao Ziyi 5-0 in the women's 75kg final, while Parveen Hooda edged Chinese Taipei's Nien-Chin Chen 3-2 in the women's 65kg final. Ankush Panghal completed the boxing gold rush by beating South Korea's Kim Minseong in the men's 80kg final.
'I think it's the first time that I get a present for myself,' Borgohain said.
On the wrestling mat, Sujeet Kalkal produced one of the day's most dramatic comebacks. Trailing Tajikistan's Abdulmazhid Kudiev 2-9 in the men's 65kg freestyle final, Kalkal fought back to win 10-9, securing his maiden Asian Games gold.
India also created history in archery. Ankita Bhakat, Kirti Sharma and Kumkum Mohod defeated 10-time champions South Korea 5-3 to win India's first Asian Games gold in the women's recurve team event. Kumkum Mohod and Dhiraj Bommadevara later added a silver in the mixed recurve team event.
India also won bronze medals through Nethra Kumanan in women's dinghy sailing and the men's sepaktakraw quadrant team.
At the end of the day's competition, India had 76 medals — 16 gold, 25 silver and 35 bronze — placing fifth in the overall standings.
The six-gold haul marked a dramatic late surge for India, with the country's gold medals coming from four different sports and the women's hockey team providing the day's final major highlight.

LIN WINS GOLD
Taiwan's Lin Yu-ting won an ⁠Asian Games gold in her new weight category two years after she was caught up in a gender dispute at the ​Paris Olympics, while Japan edged out North ​Korea via penalties in the women's football final in the penultimate day of competition at the Aichi-Nagoya Games on Friday.
Lin and Algeria's Imane Khelif both won gold in Paris amid a dispute over their eligibility. Lin was cleared to compete earlier this year after World Boxing completed a review of her sex-eligibility status.
'After the Paris Olympics, I took a little bit of a break,' the 30-year-old said.
'Coming back to boxing, I wanted to exceed ⁠my performance from the Paris Olympics, try to find my new self and have better capabilities in boxing.'
Her ⁠Olympic title and her first Asian Games crown, won in Hangzhou, both came at 57kg. In Japan Lin moved up to 60kg, and at the Nishio Gymnasium she used her reach and counter-punching to beat China's Yang Chengyu 5-0 for her second Asian Games gold.
Despite her pedigree, Lin ‌said the heavier division made her feel like a novice again.
'In ​this competition, I'm like a newborn ⁠calf... or a little white rabbit that has wandered into a great forest,' she said.
'None ​of my opponents was ordinary. Every one of ‌them was incredibly strong and powerful.
'I don't think there was a single one of my four bouts where I didn't end up on the ground at some point. That shows ​just how difficult this competition was.'
China's Olympic champion Wu Yu also moved up a weight and won the women's 51kg gold, one kilogram above the class she won in Paris.
'That one kilogram makes an enormous difference. Back then, I even cut my hair to lose 0.3 kilograms,' Wu said after beating Vietnam's Nguyen Thi Tam in the final.
'This time I'm one kilogram heavier, and my condition is ‌much better in every way.
'Making weight meant going hungry every day and doing extra training on top of that, and ​it was genuinely hard. With that extra kilogram, I can at least get proper nutrition.'
JAPAN EDGE N KOREA IN PENALTIES
At the Shizuoka Stadium, Japan battled past North Korea ​5-3 via penalties after a 2-2 stalemate at the end of extra time.
In regulation ⁠time, the hosts drew ​first blood through Ueno Mami's first-half strike but North Korea snatched the lead after the break with Jong Kum and Jon Ryong Jong finding the net.
Hanon Nishio chipped in over the diving North Korean goalkeeper in the 86th minute to draw level and force extra time.
Malaysia took both the men's and women's squash team golds, giving them four of the five titles on offer at the Nagoya Kinjo-Futo Arena. — Agencies