U.S. forces have supported the transport of more than 1 billion barrels of crude oil through the Strait of Hormuz over the past couple of months, said Brad Cooper, chief of U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM), on Saturday.
In a video posted on social media, Cooper said Iran was unable to export crude because of the U.S. maritime blockade, adding that the main shipping lanes in the strait have been cleared of mines.
Following U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran on February 28, Tehran restricted passage through the Strait of Hormuz, while U.S. forces imposed a naval blockade targeting vessels traveling to or from Iranian ports and coastal areas.
US forces support transport of over 1 bln barrels of oil via Hormuz: CENTCOM chief
China's six-member wushu taolu team began its Asian Games campaign on Sunday, the first full day of competition at the 20th Asian Games, with five athletes making their debut.
Wushu at the Games is divided into taolu, which features choreographed martial arts routines, and sanda, a full-contact fighting discipline. The taolu competition runs from Sunday through Wednesday, Sept. 20-23, at the Aichi Prefectural Martial Arts Hall in Nagoya, Japan.
The squad has completed two familiarization sessions at the venue and will contest in six of the eight taolu medal events, skipping the men's and women's Changquan, or long-fist, competitions.
The six athletes are aged from 25 to 35. Tong Xin is the only member with previous Asian Games experience.
"Apart from Tong Xin, who competed at the Hangzhou Asian Games, the remaining five athletes are making their Asian Games debuts. They are leading athletes from their provincial teams and seasoned competitors who have been tested at major events, including world championships and World Cups," said Li Qiang, head coach of China's wushu taolu team.
While the Asian Games will be new to most of the squad, their competition routines are not. The athletes have been refining them for more than three years, and in some cases for a decade.
"A wushu saying goes: 'Practice a form a thousand times, and the technique will come naturally.' After honing a movement day after day, year after year, our understanding of it and our feel for it change. Another saying is 'strive for perfection.' That is why we spend 10 years working on a single movement," said Li Jianming, a member of the team.
China's wushu team opens Asian Games campaign with five debutants
