Karateka Tenzing Sherpa won Nepal's first medal at the 20th Asian Games on Wednesday, taking bronze in the men's kumite over-84kg category by defeating Laos' Vathana Xayasan 9-1 at Toyohashi Gymnasium.
Sherpa reached the bronze-medal bout after defeating Macau's Leong On Tek by hansoku (disqualification) in the quarterfinals, then losing 5-0 to Iran's Mahmoud Nemati in the semifinals. In the bronze bout, he dominated, scoring nine points six from yuko and three from ippon while Xayasan scored just one.
The medal is Nepal's first at these Games and came in the tournament's final karate event. Brunei, Mongolia and Syria also won bronze on the same day. China led the overall medal tally with 64 medals, followed by host Japan (52) and South Korea (34).
