Jinnat wins bronze despite semifinal defeat

Bangladesh’s Jinnat Akter secured a bronze medal in women’s 52kg wushu at the Asian Games despite losing her semifinal bout to China’s Di Wei on Wednesday.

Jinnat, who received a bye in the preliminary round, reached the semifinals after her Indonesian quarterfinal opponent Tharisa Dya Florentina was disqualified for failing the weight requirement.

She could not make it to the final after losing in the first round of her semifinal bout against the Chinese opponent. However, reaching the semifinals guaranteed her a bronze medal under the wushu rules.

Jinnat expressed hope that better training facilities and coaching would help Bangladeshi athletes compete for gold or silver at future Asian Games.