Romania's powerful team captured the gold medal in the European women's gymnastics championships on Friday, and matched its men's triumph of two weeks ago.
The Romanians had to compete in the morning along with the sport's weaker teams, then waited nearly 12 hours until defending champion Russia finished before learning the result. Russia competed in the evening along with the other top eight teams from 2002.
Romania scored a total of 112.772 points. Ukraine scored 111.247 for second.
PHOTO: AFP
Russia, with major mistakes on the uneven bars and lackluster floor exercises from two of its three gymnasts, scored 110.423 to place third.
Romania has dominated team competition, winning world titles from 1995 to 2001 and the 2000 Olympics. The only time it lost major titles since 1994 was to the US at the Atlanta Olympics and the 2003 worlds in Anaheim.
Yet it bypassed the last European competition in 2002, and therefore was not credited with a ranking. Russia went on to take the championship.
"In 2002, we didn't compete in Patras because we didn't have enough gymnasts. there were a lot of injuries," Romania coach Octavian Belu said. "We must accept the rigid system of the first eight competing last.
"It was not easy to wait until the last apparatus in the competition. In the morning there was not enough pressure," Belu added. "But in the future I prefer to compete in the last group."
Catalioa Ponor, who qualified in three of the four disciplines, didn't mind competing in the morning.
"I am sure I would have done the same whether I competed at 10 in the morning or 7 in the evening," Ponor said. "I do my best routines no matter what time I compete."
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