World Athletics chief hails China's performance at Tokyo Olympics

Su Bingtian (R) of China competes during the Men's 100m Final at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan, Aug. 1, 2021. (Xinhua/Ju Huanzong)

World Athletics President Sebastian Coe praised Chinese athletes' performance at Tokyo 2020.

Su Bingtian (R) of China competes during the Men's 100m Final at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan, Aug. 1, 2021. (Xinhua/Ju Huanzong)

World Athletics President Sebastian Coe praised Chinese athletes' performance at Tokyo 2020.

Su Bingtian (1st R) and Wu Zhiqiang (3rd R) of China compete during the Men's 4x100m Heat at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan, Aug. 5, 2021. (Xinhua/Wang Lili)

"You've seen the strength in endurance events. Chinese relay teams now are extremely competitive. You have seen the bandwidth of talent that has emerged and is emerging in the field as well. Su Bingtian is a really good example of the progress that is now being made in the short distances."

Su Bingtian made history by becoming the first Chinese runner in the men's 100m final and only the second Asian, following Japan's Takayoshi Yoshioka at the 1932 Olympics.

He broke the Asian record in the semifinals with a time of 9.83 seconds and went on to finish sixth in the final.

Su also helped China reach the men's 4x100 meters relay final, where they placed fourth.

China's two gold medals came from Gong Lijiao in the women's shot put and Liu Shiying in the women's javelin throw. Zhu Yaming produced his personal best twice in the men's triple jump en route to winning the silver medal with 17.57 meters.