Chinese finishes 1-2 in women's gymnastic all-around
(Xinhua)Updated: 2006-12-05 09:03
China finished one-two in the women's gymnastic all-around final, continuing its sweep in the sport by taking the fourth straight gold medal at the Asian Games here on Monday.
 China's He Ning (R) and compatriot Zhou Zhuoru celebrate on the podium after winning the gold medal and silver medal respectively in the women's individual all-round final at the Asian Games in Doha December 4, 2006.[Reuters]  |
Teenager He Ning won the gold medal in 59.450 points, 0.400 points ahead of teammate Zhou Zhuoru, while DPR Korean Hong Su Jong was third in 57.800.
Hong fell from the beam, which cost her chance to bid for DPR Korea's first ever all-around title after leading the first two rotations.
 China's Zhou Zhuoru performs on the floor during the women's individual all-round final at the Asian Games in Doha December 4, 2006 |
Then came the frustration for Hong in the beam, which she also dropped from in the qualification round. She failed to sustain her balance and fell down to drain her score by a large margin.
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He Ning took further stride on the floor with a set of elegant tumbling to wrap up her title at the Asiad with a score of 15.200, and Zhou followed up with 14.850 against Hong's 14.450.
China pocketed up all four gymnastic golds available after both the men's and women's team and all-around finals.
"It's a perfect experience for me. I had a better form today than that at the Aarhus gymnastic worlds," said He Ning.
"I had much more pressure in the all-around than in the team's competition, but I was fortunate enough to finish all my actions without a big error. Zhuoru did not play to her best, so I beat her by a little margin."
"I think my grandpa is watching the match and he must be very happy at the moment," added He.
With the silver medal, Zhou Zhuoru was a little disappointed after the award ceremony.
"I think He performed better than me, she deserves the gold medal. I have to wait for the next time to win," told Zhou.
Lu Shanzhen, head coach of the Chinese women's team, gave more credit to He's spirit and mentality than her skills.
"I think He Ning has the best mentality although she is not the best in skills. Her strong will is the key element for her victory, " Lu explained.
"It's only a regional match, so He Ning's routines are enough to handle her opponents, but we need to improve her skills and difficulties for the world arena," Lu said of his future approach for his gymnast.
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