Chinese judoka Tang Jing was disqualified from her women’s 70-kilogram quarterfinal at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games after an unusual incident involving Japan’s Maeda Rin.
The incident occurred during their quarterfinal bout on Thursday at the Aichi International Arena in Nagoya. It was reported that Tang appeared to bite Maeda’s left arm while attempting to escape from a hold.
Maeda immediately alerted the referee after the action, showing her arm after the sleeve was rolled up. Visible marks reportedly remained on her skin.
Officials subsequently reviewed the incident through video replay before awarding Tang a penalty loss. Japanese reports said a member of the Chinese coaching staff also watched the replay during the deliberation.
Tang appeared to dispute the ruling but eventually shook hands with Maeda before leaving the competition area.
The official result recorded the bout as a penalty loss, while Japanese media attributed the decision to the biting incident.
Tang declined interview requests after the match, reportedly responding “no” when approached in the mixed zone.
She also did not compete in the repechage despite having a route toward a bronze-medal match. Her scheduled opponent, Inungambi Takelambam, advanced by walkover.
Tang previously won bronze at the 2018 Asian Games in Jakarta-Palembang and silver at the 2022 Hangzhou Games.
Maeda, meanwhile, continued her campaign after the controversial quarterfinal. She defeated North Korea’s Mun Seong-hee in the semifinals before overcoming Kazakhstan’s Azhar Ashat in the final to claim the women’s 70kgs gold medal. (Adrian Co)
