HIROSHIMA, Japan -- The curtain came down on the 12th Asian Games on Sunday after 15 days of Chinese domination, the return of Ma's Family Army and a refreshing lack of drug scandals.


Amid lasers, fireworks, samurai warriors, the dousing of the Games flame and a volcano erupting with doves of peace, a record 6,800 athletes and officials from 43 nations bid farewell to the Games which saw superpower China dominate with 137 gold medals, 92 silvers and 60 bronzes.


Nobody came even close -- runner-up was South Korea with 63 golds and hosts Japan had to grin and bear it as they were relegated into third place again, with 59.


China's medal haul was considerably down on its 1990 Games total of 183, due partly to the participation of five ex-Soviet republics for the first time, two placing fourth and fifth.


Kazakhstan mined 25 golds and Uzbekistan 10, signalling a fundamental change in Asia's sporting picture bound to be even more marked by the time Asia's top athletes gather for the next Games, in Bangkok in 1998.


Looking to the future, Olympic Council of Asia President Sheikh Ahmad al-Fahad al-Sabah said the size of the Games would have to be restricted.


"There should be 25 or 26 sports maximum," he said during a news conference to express his delight over the Games.


Humble in victory, China downplayed its domination and praised other nations for a general rise in standards at the Games which saw 24 world records and 59 Asian marks broken.


China was robbed of a perfect end to their golden chase on Sunday, losing both volleyball and soccer finals, the last medals to be awarded.


Unfancied Uzbekistan grabbed gold in the soccer with a 4-2 victory over players from China's new professional league. The Games newcomers scored twice in the first eight minutes. Hero of the match Igor Shkvyrin, who scored the first goal, created the second and set up the third. He totaled eight goals in tournament and was voted its best player.


Japan got some consolation from taking the volleyball title, coming back from a two-set deficit to clinch victory.


In the final day of field and track, China took four titles, including all three of the women's events, but a feud between supercoach Ma Junren and the Chinese sporting establishment tarnished the gloss of the on-track action.


Ma, whose stable of world-beating athletes took six golds, four silvers and two bronzes, traded public barbs with the Chinese Olympic Committee's Wei after Qu Yunxia took the 1,500 meters title in four minutes 12.48 seconds, well outside the world mark she set last year of 3:50.46.


Reacting to comments by Wei that he was money-crazy and overtrained his athletes, Ma said: "So what if we overtrain, we don't take his money."


Ma's comment appeared a clear swipe at sports policies of the central government in Beijing which has been trying in vain to bring the maverick, but highly successful, coach to heel.


The Games were also declared practically free from the scourge of doping. Medical officials said they had registered only one positive test, compared with three positives during the 1990 event.