Athletes from the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region on Monday bagged six medals – including the city’s first two golds – at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games, bringing the medal haul to eight.

The SAR has sent around 580 athletes to compete in 38 events at the Asian Games in Japan, running until Oct 4.

Wushu athlete Lydia Sham Hui-yu won the women’s Changquan event in the morning, earning the city its first gold medal in this edition of the Asian Games.

Sham, who was one of the three SAR flag bearers at the event’s opening ceremony on Saturday, was crowned champion with 9.713 points, beating the Macao SAR’s Sou Cho-man with 9.710 points and Indonesia’s Eugenia Diva Widodo with 9.706 points. Her fellow Hong Kong athlete Michelle Yeung finished fifth on her Asian Games debut.

Speaking after the competition, Sham said she was grateful to the SAR government, her coach, and her supporters, adding that she had prepared for eight years for just 90 seconds on the field.

Congratulating Sham on her victory, Hong Kong SAR Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu said she showcased the determination of local athletes and brought honor to the city with her performance.

Olympic medalist Siobhan Haughey, dubbed Hong Kong’s flying fish, also won gold in the women’s 200-meter freestyle event later in the day. Haughey led throughout the race and finished more than a body length ahead of the runner-up, Li Jiaping from the national team, in one minute and 54.96 seconds.

Haughey — Asia’s record holder in the event — said she had given her all and was satisfied with the result, despite it not being as fast she had hoped for.

In the men’s 50-meter freestyle event, Hong Kong swimmer Ian Ho Yen-tou secured silver with a time of 21.76 second, only 0.1 seconds behind South Korean champion Kim Young-beom.

Another three bronze medals were won in the triathlon and karate events.

The SAR’s triathlon mixed relay team, consisting of Cade Wright, Oscar Coggins, Bailee Brown, and Robin Elg, finished with a time of one hour, 27 minutes and 25 seconds.

Karateka Howard Hung Ho-wai beat Malaysia's Mohamad Haznil Henry 5:0 in the men’s individual kata bronze medal match, securing the first medal won by a Hong Kong male athlete in the event at the Asian Games.

Another karate athlete, Wong Cheuk-lee, beat an opponent from Saudi Arabia to win bronze in the women’s kumite - 68 kilogram event.

The city took two silver medals on Sunday - the first competition day after the opening ceremony. They were won by karate athlete Grace Lau Mo-sheung in the women’s individual kata event, and by the women’s 4x100m freestyle relay team, comprised of Gilaine Ma, Li Sum-yiu, Natalie Kan Cheuk-tung and Haughey.

The Hong Kong fencing team will make their debut on Tuesday, with local athletes competing in swimming, karate and other events.

The city’s delegation clinched a record 53 medals – eight gold, 16 silver and 29 bronze – in the Hangzhou Asian Games in 2023.

Contact the writer at stacyshi@chinadailyhk.com