Chinese table tennis great Ma Long capped his storied career with a long-sought team gold, while sprint star Su Bingtian brought the curtain down on his track journey with an emotional farewell at China's 15th National Games on Thursday.

Su Bingtian (R) of team Guangdong competes during the men's 4x100m relay final of athletics at China's 15th National Games in Guangzhou, south China's Guangdong Province, Nov. 20, 2025. (Xinhua/Jiang Han)

With only women's water polo left on the schedule, the games entered their final stretch a day before the closing ceremony. 35 golds were awarded across the penultimate day, many doubling as last chapters for some of China's most celebrated veterans.

Track and field delivered 12 titles, including the men's and women's 4x100m relays. Hubei won the men's title, but the loudest ovation went to the 36-year-old Su, Asia's 9.83-second record holder in 100 meters, who anchored Guangdong to fourth place before announcing his retirement.

"It's an honor to say goodbye here at home, after holding on for so many years," Su said, removing his spikes and waving barefoot to the crowd. "We proved we can break 10 seconds. If you persist, you can succeed."

In table tennis, the 37-year-old Ma - holder of dozens of world titles - finally filled the one gap on his resume: a National Games men's team gold. Beijing, led by Ma and Wang Chuqin, defeated a Shanghai squad spearheaded by Fan Zhendong and Xu Xin 3-1 in the best-of-five final.

Badminton also delivered fitting finales. Olympic champions Zheng Siwei/Huang Yaqiong of Zhejiang, competing in their third National Games, claimed the mixed doubles title with a 2-0 win over Hunan's Zhou Zhihong/Wei Yaxin, marking a graceful end to their eight-year partnership.

"We've shared so many highs and lows together, always trusting each other," Huang said. "Badminton made me stronger, inside and out."

In women's doubles, Fujian's Olympic champion Huang Dongping and partner Tan Ning beat Sichuan's Zheng Yu and Zhang Shuxian 2-0, a win the 30-year-old Huang attributed to "pure willpower" after just over a week of joint training.

Fujian's Weng Hongyang captured the men's singles title with a 2-0 victory over Hubei's Zhu Xuancheng, while Hubei's Wang Zhiyi edged Olympic champion Chen Yufei 2-1 for the women's crown, a rare moment that left the usually composed 25-year-old in tears.

"It was incredibly tough," Wang said. "The moment I won, everything just poured out."

On the tennis courts, Zhejiang's Wu Yibing, 26, outlasted Beijing's rising 20-year-old star Shang Juncheng 6-0, 1-6, 6-4 to win his first National Games singles gold. Anhui's 31-year-old Zhu Lin defeated Beijing's Gao Xinyu 6-1, 6-2 to turn her two previous bronzes into gold, ending Tianjin's four-edition dominance in the women's singles.

"At this stage of my career, achieving something new makes me proud," Zhu said. "I hope it inspires more kids in Anhui to pick up a racket."

In trap mixed team shooting, Hunan's Guo Yuhao and 54-year-old Liu Yingzi hit 44 targets to win gold. It marked Liu's eighth National Games appearance and her third career title at the event.

In men's volleyball, Shandong swept Fujian 3-0 to take the championship.