China won its first women’s team gymnastics Olympic gold medal yesterday, holding its nerve as the US made crucial errors in front of a fiercely loyal hometown crowd.
The win avenged China’s narrow loss to the US at last year’s world championships and added to the team gold claimed by the home nation’s male gymnasts on Tuesday.
Romania won bronze but looked a shadow of the side that won four women’s gymnastics gold medals in Athens four years ago.
PHOTO: AFP
China finished on 188.9 points, 2.375 points ahead of the US on 186.525, with Romania on 181.525.
With eight teams in the final, China and the US were paired together as they went through the four sets of apparatus, making for high drama as the teams slugged it out head-to-head for the Olympic title.
They began on the vault, a strength for a Chinese team featuring world champion Cheng Fei.
Cheng managed a 16.0 but US star Shawn Johnson matched her and the US took a 0.6 point lead into the second round.
Next up were the uneven bars, where both teams faltered during the qualification rounds, including a trip on landing from Nastia Liukin of the US.
Liukin did not repeat her mistake in the final, scoring 16.9 to put the US in a strong position.
The crowd then tried to lift their team with loud chants of “China, China”.
It paid off as He Kexhin was awarded 16.85 for a routine that helped give China a lead of 1.125 at the half-way point.
But potential disaster struck in the next round when Cheng Fei fell off the balance beam and received just 15.15, although Deng Linlin almost made up for it with an eye-catching routine that scored 15.925.
Cheng’s mistake gave the US team sthe chance to establish a decisive lead but they blew it when Alicia Sacramone fell attempting a jumping mount and received 15.1.
Her team-mates Luikin and Johnson both scored highly but China remained a single point ahead going into the final apparatus, the excercise floor, regarded as a US stronghold.
But Sacramone again fell over and scored 14.125, while Liukin and Johnson both stepped out of bounds.
US team co-ordinator Martha Karolyi said Sacramone lost her concentration when officials held her up as she was preparing for the beam and she never regained focus.
After the US stumbles, strong performances from Deng Linlin and Jiang Yuyuan meant Cheng needed just 13.075 to seal gold and make amends for her earlier error.
A hush fell over the crowd as she prepared for her routine, erupting into a roar of approval after a dynamic performance to traditional Chinese music that was awarded 15.45 and so clinched victory.
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