China beat Japan 3-2 in a tough match Wednesday to win the men's volleyball gold of the 5th East Asian Games (EAG).

Finding it difficult to catch up with the quick attacks of Japan, China met with more challenges than they had imagined. Thus China's better performance at critical times in the final set helped it win the match 25-23, 24-26, 24-26, 25-20, 15-13.

"Japan posed a huge threat to the Chinese team with its speedy transition and combination, and China can not find an effective way to curb such offensive," said Chinese coach Zhou Jian'an. "But we are still pleased to have won the gold medal."

Japanese coach Seiji Yoshida expressed disappointment of losing the final. "We are a young team and our players have an eagerness to win."

South Korea defeated Hong Kong to grab the bronze medal.