JAKARTA -- Japan won the mixed triathlon on Sunday to finish the Asian Games in Jakarta and Palembang, Indonesia, with 75 gold medals.
Japanese athletes collected 205 medals during the Games, which began on Aug. 18, their largest haul since the 1974 Asian Games in Tehran when Japan also won 75 gold.
At the previous five Asian Games, Japan finished third in the medal standings behind China and South Korea. At this year's Games, however, it collected more gold medals than South Korea to finish second for the first time in 24 years. China topped the standings with 289 medals, including 132 gold.
"Japanese athletes posted fantastic results that far exceeded our expectations," Yasuhiro Yamashita, chief of the Japanese delegation, said at a press conference on Sunday.
Yamashita praised the results of athletes in sports added to the program for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics such as sports climbing and karate, saying. "I really look forward to watching their performances in two years [at the Tokyo Games]," he said.
"Earning 75 gold medals is great, but how to utilize the results ahead of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics will be more important," he added.
Historic titles in rugby, hockey
Japan won the mixed triathlon, finishing in 1 hour 30 minutes 39 seconds, 2:12 ahead of second-place South Korea, to complete a sweep of all three triathlon events.
As the final event of the Games, it featured teams of two men and two women competing in a relay in which each athlete completes a 300-meter swim, 6.3-kilometer cycling road race and a 2.1-kilometer run.
Mixed-team judo, an event in which teams of three men and three women compete, was held at the Asian Games for the first time, and has also been added to the program for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. Japan defeated Kazakhstan 4-0 in the gold medal match on Saturday.
"It really was a good experience to compete in a big event like this," said Haruka Funakubo, a member of the Japan team.
Meanwhile, the Japan women's rugby sevens team won its first gold at the Asian Games with a 7-5 victory over China.
"There are much stronger opponents in the world," said Yume Hirano, who scored a try in the match. "We need to improve by taking part in tougher competitions."
The Japan men's field hockey team also won a historic victory on Saturday, defeating Malaysia in a shootout to claim its first gold at the Asian Games.
However, the Japan men's soccer team fell to South Korea 2-1 in extra time. South Korea scored the first goal in the first half of extra time and doubled its tally shortly afterward. Although Ayase Ueda scored a header goal for Japan in the second half of extra time, the team failed to level the score.
"The game showed we weren't strong enough," Ueda said.
"I recognized their improvement in each game," added Japan coach Hajime Moriyasu.
Koreas take silver in hoops
The unified Korean women's basketball team found a silver lining in their tough 71-65 loss to China in the final on Saturday.
South Korean captain Lim Yung Hui, who scored a game-high 24 points, praised the unified team, saying, "We were like family."
The unified team was formed under a political agreement between the North Korean and South Korean governments following a historic summit meeting in April between the countries' leaders.
In the postgame press conference, South Korean coach Lee Moon Kyu lamented.
"We did not have enough time to prepare for the unified Korean team. If we had more time, we would have done better," the coach said.
Players including Lim also pointed out the lack of preparation time.
Still, the squad advanced all the way to the gold medal game with the support of a group of spectators from North Korea and South Korea sitting together in the stands and cheering on the unified team.
"If we're unified, I could play in the South, and then South Koreans could play in the North," said North Korean starter Ro Suk Yong.
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