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SAPPORO, Japan, Feb. 19 (Xinhua) -- Japan's Eri Yanetani won the women's snowboard giant slalom event here on Sunday, pocketing the first gold at the eighth Asian Winter Games.
Yanetani, born in 1984, finished first in both runs with a combined time of 1 minutes and 43.47 seconds. "The track is with some difficulty. I tried my best and performed well in general," she said.
China's Zang Ruxin and Gong Naiying took the second and third place in the event, respectively, winning two medals for China.
"I feel proud and honored," said Zang, as the medalists will receive their awards at the opening ceremony to be held later in the day.
China's giant slalom team are making their first Winter Asiad appearance in Sapporo. Zang said although the giant slalom is a relatively new sport in China, the country has been making steady progress and catching up with other countries.
In the men's giant slalom event, South Koreans Lee Sang-ho and Choi Bo-gun won the gold and silver medals respectively, while the bronze went to Japan's Shinnosuke Kamino. China's Bi Ye took the sixth place.
