Harbin: Ekaterina Avvakumova, a Russian-born biathlete competing for South Korea, clinched an Asian Winter Games gold medal for her adopted country in China on Tuesday. Avvakumova emerged victorious in the women's 7.5-kilometer sprint event in biathlon at Yabuli Ski Resort, situated approximately 200 kilometers southeast of the main host city Harbin, clocking a time of 22:45.4.
According to Yonhap News Agency, this achievement marks South Korea's first Winter Asiad gold medal in biathlon, a sport that combines cross-country skiing and shooting. Meng Fanqi of China secured the silver medal with a time of 22:47.8, while Tang Jialin of China took home the bronze, finishing at 23:01.0. South Korea has accumulated a total of 12 gold medals at the Harbin Asiad, which is set to conclude on Friday.
Avvakumova, 34, became a South Korean citizen in 2017 and represented her new country at the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics, achieving a 16th place finish in the 15km individual event, the highest placement by a South Korean biathlete in Winter Games history. However, her performance at the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics saw her finish 73rd in the individual event.
Despite not being widely regarded as a gold medal contender at the Asian Winter Games, officials had hoped Avvakumova would reach the podium. During Tuesday's race, she led through the first 2.4 km before Tang Jialin took the lead until the 5km mark. Avvakumova trailed Tang by nearly two seconds with 1 km remaining but made a decisive push to secure the gold medal.
Avvakumova's next competition will be the women's 4x6km relay scheduled for Thursday.