A referee who was accidentally hit by a hammer on Saturday night at the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou is now in stable condition with surgery planned, according to the games' organizing committee.

The 62-year-old referee, surnamed Huang, is a technical official from the competition department of the organizing committee. The injury is believed to be due to an unfortunate miss of an athlete's off-balance movement in the tense competition.

He received preliminary emergency medical treatment on site immediately after being hit by the hammer. Then he was swiftly sent to the Binjiang campus of the second affiliated hospital of the Zhejiang University School of Medicine for further treatment.

With an initial diagnosis as the right open tibial fibula fracture, the referee will have a surgery planned shortly.

The hammer used in men's hammer throw event can weigh over 7kg, with a total length of about 120 cm.