The Asian Games results displayed on this page are reflected from the Official Report, a document published for each Asian Games by the Organizing Committee. The Games medal tables show the number of gold, silver, and bronze medals won in that year by participating nations. Team victories account for one medal unlike the single participant – one for each – individual victories.
As far as the Asian Games are concerned, China, South Korea, and Japan are the leaders of Asian sport. Historically speaking, Japan dominated the Asian Games from the inaugural event in 1951, winning 24 gold, through the 1978 games in Bangkok where they won 70 gold.
China was already looking good in the 1978 games, grabbing the second spot with 51 gold. In the 1982 New Delhi Asian Games, China topped the medal tally for the first time with 61 gold, Japan taking second spot.
From then onward, China has stamped its domination on Asian sport. In the 1986 Seoul Asian games, China led the overall tally with 94 gold. Host South Korea performed brilliantly, coming a close second with 93 gold. However, in the 1990 games and the two decades after that, the gap between China and the rest in Asia became unbridgeable. In the 2010 Guangzhou Asian Games, China won an astonishing 199 gold medals. South Korea (76 gold) and Japan (48 gold) were a distant second and third.
South Korea, playing at home, are likely to up their tally this time around. But there’s no getting close to the Chinese machine.