On April 28, the "Exciting Hangzhou" 2023 Asian Senior Kurash Championship kicked off at Xiaoshan Linpu Gymnasium in Hangzhou. As China's first intercontinental kurash event, it would accommodate more than 160 athletes from 20 Asian countries and regions competing for 15 gold medals.

On the first competition day, Zhou Junzhi from Jiangsu, China, won the women's +87kg final over the Iranian wrestler. This is the first kurash gold medal of Asian Championship for China. Both for her personally and for China, it was a historic victory.

Zhou Junzhi, a previous judoka practicing kurash for just three months, won her first match against a strong Uzbek wrestler and kept her winning streak until standing atop the podium. She said the gold medal gave her confidence in preparing for the Hangzhou Asian Games.

A traditional form of Uzbek wrestling dating back to 3,500 years ago, kurash is popular in Central Asia. Xu Lili, the world champion and Olympic runner-up in judo, said frankly, "Chinese kurash wrestlers are weaker in strength than the top Asian players, which their wrestling skills can compensate."

Zhou Junzhi's victory not only inspires the confidence of Chinese kurash wrestlers, but also attracts more attention from on-site audience to the sport.

Xiaoshan Linpu Gymnasium is the competition venue for kurash, jiu-jitsu and judo at the Hangzhou Asian Games. After this championship, the World Kurash Series Qualifier (WSP) will also be held here. The two international events are precious opportunities of test for the venue operation team.