The World Games in Chengdu closed on a high, but the week began in heartbreak. Italian orienteer Mattia Debertolis was found unconscious on the course August 8 and tragically passed away days later at just 26. A civil engineer and PhD student at Stockholm University, Debertolis was more than an athlete — he was a rising mind and a competitor taken too soon. His loss hit the Games with a weight that no medal tally can balance.
But as it always does, sport pressed forward — and the action was fierce.
Speed climbing stole the spotlight. Six golds were up for grabs, and China made it clear this was their wall. On the men’s side, world record holder Sam Watson looked ready to cash in, but home favorite Shou Hong Chu snatched gold with a 0.16-second edge that might as well have been a mile at that pace. The women’s podium? Forget balance — China slammed the door, sweeping all three spots. Li Juan Deng held off Yu Mei Qin by one-hundredth of a second. Yes, 0.01. That’s literally the blink of an eye. Qin doubled up on silver in speed 4, while Indonesia’s Desak Made Rita Kusuma Dwei broke through for gold. Jianguo Long’s personal best 4.74 in the men’s event added more proof: this was China’s house.
The relays drove the point home. Chinese women finished one-two like it was a national training run, and the men put the United States in their rearview to claim another gold. At that point, the only question left was how much hardware the hosts could carry out of their own building.
Flag football brought one of the few shocks of the week. Team USA — heavy favorites and looking like a lock — got clipped by Mexico in the women’s gold medal game, 26–21. It was the kind of upset that flips a script and reminds you why trophies aren’t handed out on paper.
By the time the curtain dropped, the medal count looked like a demolition. China racked up 64 total medals, 36 of them gold — double Germany’s haul, and then some. Italy finished second in total hardware with 57, while Germany’s 17 golds kept them just barely in the conversation less than half of the hosts while still being nation with the second most athletes standing at the top of a podium.
Now the torch moves to Europe. Karlsruhe, Germany, gets the next crack at hosting in 2029. The question: can anyone else make it their Games, or will we be talking about China’s dominance all over again in four years?
The Stain Sports 