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The 13-year-old Chinese swimmer Yu Zidi set an Asian Games record as she scorched to gold on Sunday’s first full day of competition.
The schoolgirl, who turns 14 next month, took the women’s 200m butterfly crown in a Games-record 2min 05.08sec.
It was the first major title of her young career, less than two years out from the Los Angeles Olympics.
“It was only so-so,” a smiling Yu said after receiving her medal.
Yu became the youngest medallist in swimming world championships history last year when she took home relay bronze aged 12.
Swimming is one of three sports at the Games taking place in Tokyo, where a typhoon is due to blow in, with the rest of the Games unfolding in Nagoya and Aichi prefecture.
China is expected to be the pre-eminent power in the pool, on day one clinching six of the seven titles on offer.
The Games were officially opened on Saturday by Emperor Naruhito.
For the next two weeks, athletes will compete in more than 40 sports before closing on 4 October.
The Games has 2028 Olympics places up for grabs but have been dogged by a series of problems in the buildup.
Accommodating the more than 11,000 athletes and 6,000 officials has stretched organisers to the limit after they decided not to have a traditional athletes’ village to save money. Competitors are instead staying in a combination of temporary container-style huts, hotels and on the Costa Serena cruise ship.
The International Olympic Committee president, Kirsty Coventry, called the temporary huts “beautiful” on Sunday after looking around – but conceded they were “a little tighter” than similar accommodation at the Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics this year.
Japanese organisers will be desperate for the sport to take over from a troubled lead-in that included complaints about the accommodation and a shortage of rooms.
However, an incoming typhoon that soaked Tokyo on Sunday could cause more problems.
The Tokyo venue hosting equestrian was closed because of the weather. The competition is now due to start on Tuesday, a day later than originally planned.
The full force of Typhoon Dujuan will not be felt until Monday, with Tokyo expected to be hit with strong winds and heavy rain.
Nagoya will not be in the storm’s immediate path but wet weather is forecast there too.
Iran celebrated wildly after beating China 79-70 to win men’s basketball bronze.
South Korea won basketball gold, silencing the home crowd with a 67-57 win over Japan.
In other sports, Smriti Mandhana became the highest run-scorer in women’s T20 international cricket as India crushed Bangladesh by 114 runs in the semi-finals, with fellow opener Shafali Verma hitting her maiden hundred.
India will face Sri Lanka in Tuesday’s final, unless the weather intervenes.
