Home » Sports » Gymnastics
American women win worlds gold
Source: Agencies |
October 12, 2011, Wednesday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
THE United States won the women's title at the world championships in Tokyo yesterday in a commanding performance ahead of next year's London Olympics.
The Americans scored 179.411 points, finishing 4 points ahead of Russia, last year's champion. It is the first title for the US since 2007. China (172.820) won the bronze.
The Americans were dealt a blow when Beijing Olympic team captain Alicia Sacramone tore her Achilles tendon last Friday, leaving them with Aly Raisman as the only one who'd competed at a world championships before. But the young competitors oozed confidence from the moment they stepped on the floor yesterday.
The men's final is tonight.
"Team USA is really strong," Raisman said, "and we're just going to keep getting stronger."
"I was hoping for it, but I could not be 100 percent sure because there were so many newcomers," said national team coordinator Martha Karolyi, beaming. "These girls were standing up very confident, very powerful out there."
The gold is the 10th medal at the worlds for Sacramone, breaking the American record she'd shared with Shannon Miller and Nastia Liukin. Sacramone sent a message to the team on Twitter afterward, saying, "Words can't describe how proud I am of all of you!"
Alexander Alexandrov, Russia's coach, insisted he was more than "satisfied" with the second-place finish.
The Russians were without defending world champion Aliya Mustafina, who injured her knee in April, and Alexandrov said Anna Dementyeva had been running a fever in recent days.
The Chinese team comprising of He Kexin, Huang Qiushuang, Jiang Yuyuan, Sui Lu, Tan Sixin, and Yao Jinnan edged Romania (172.412) for the bronze medal.
The Americans never faltered, cruising through qualifying without a single missed routine. Team finals offer a different type of pressure. Scoring starts from scratch and the format changes, with three gymnasts competing on each event and all three scores counting.
The Americans scored 179.411 points, finishing 4 points ahead of Russia, last year's champion. It is the first title for the US since 2007. China (172.820) won the bronze.
The Americans were dealt a blow when Beijing Olympic team captain Alicia Sacramone tore her Achilles tendon last Friday, leaving them with Aly Raisman as the only one who'd competed at a world championships before. But the young competitors oozed confidence from the moment they stepped on the floor yesterday.
The men's final is tonight.
"Team USA is really strong," Raisman said, "and we're just going to keep getting stronger."
"I was hoping for it, but I could not be 100 percent sure because there were so many newcomers," said national team coordinator Martha Karolyi, beaming. "These girls were standing up very confident, very powerful out there."
The gold is the 10th medal at the worlds for Sacramone, breaking the American record she'd shared with Shannon Miller and Nastia Liukin. Sacramone sent a message to the team on Twitter afterward, saying, "Words can't describe how proud I am of all of you!"
Alexander Alexandrov, Russia's coach, insisted he was more than "satisfied" with the second-place finish.
The Russians were without defending world champion Aliya Mustafina, who injured her knee in April, and Alexandrov said Anna Dementyeva had been running a fever in recent days.
The Chinese team comprising of He Kexin, Huang Qiushuang, Jiang Yuyuan, Sui Lu, Tan Sixin, and Yao Jinnan edged Romania (172.412) for the bronze medal.
The Americans never faltered, cruising through qualifying without a single missed routine. Team finals offer a different type of pressure. Scoring starts from scratch and the format changes, with three gymnasts competing on each event and all three scores counting.
- About Us
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
-
RSS - |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Contact Us
- |
- Shanghai Call Center: 962288
- |
- Tip-off hotline: 52920043
- 沪ICP证：沪ICP备05050403号-1
- |
- 互联网新闻信息服务许可证：31120180004
- |
- 网络视听许可证：0909346
- |
- 广播电视节目制作许可证：沪字第354号
- |
- 增值电信业务经营许可证：沪B2-20120012
Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.
