China Surges Ahead to 22 Gold Medals
Liu Zige won China's first swimming gold of the Beijing Olympics, one of five gold medals today by the host that lifted its tally to 22 as Japan's Kosuke Kitajima became the only man to sweep back-to-back breaststroke titles. Liu, who was competing in her first international meet, won the women's 200 meter butterfly in a world record 2 minutes, 4.18 seconds. Her victory helped the host move to within 10 of its total of gold medals in Athens in 2004.
``I never expected to be this fast, and it's a surprise that I can score gold,'' Liu, 19, told reporters. ``I had never thought I could score gold.''
Du Li won the women's 50-meter rifle, Yang Wei took the men's all-around gymnastics title, Zhang Juanjuan captured China's first archery gold and Yang Xiuli secured the women's 78 kilogram judo. The home nation also leads in total medals 35 to 34 over the US, which stayed on 10 golds. In one of the biggest upsets of the Games, top-seeded Roger Federer was ousted from the tennis tournament by James Blake. One more title will be decided today in equestrian. Some outdoor events, including canoe and kayak slalom finals, were postponed because of torrential rain and lightning in the Chinese capital.
Indoors at the Beijing Shooting Range Hall, Du clinched the victory five days after nerves got to her in the air pistol event and the world champion slumped to fifth in the opening medal event of the Games. She made amends with an Olympic record score today.
``It was so hard since I lost my first event but I held on,'' Du told reporters.
Chiara Cainero won the women's skeet and Andrea Minguzzi secured the Greco-Roman wrestling 84-kilogram to lift Italy to six gold medals,- tied for third with South Korea and Germany. Zhang denied the South Koreans a seventh title by upsetting defending champion Park Sung Hyun to in the women's individual archery, while Yang Xiuli was awarded her judo gold medal by a split decision from the judges. Yang Wei, who had considered quitting his sport after failing to get a medal in Athens, made it three out of three gymnastics golds for the host.
``My coach took me on a vacation and told me that the 2008 Games would be the greatest chance in 100 years and I should have a try at it,'' said Yang, who waved his medal to the crowd of 18,000 on a victory lap of the National Indoor Stadium. ``He kept pushing me and then he kicked me to the highest position on the podium.''
Mongolia and Cuba got their gold medals in Beijing as Naidan Tuvshinbayar took the men's 100kg judo category and Mijain Lopez captured the men's Greco-Roman wrestling superheavyweight division. Russia's Aslanbek Khushtov won the 96kg Greco-Roman category, while Ukraine beat China in the women's team fencing final. Kitajima, who won the 100-meter breaststroke three days ago, defended his 200 title in an Olympic-record 2 minutes, 7.64 seconds. He holds the world mark at 2:07.51.
``I was not thinking about winning two gold medals at consecutive Olympics,'' Kitajima told reporters. ``What I wanted to do is show my best performance here in Beijing.''
The perfect record of the US in the women's 800-meter freestyle relay ended when Australia took the gold medal in a world-record 7:44.31. The Americans finished third behind China after sweeping the titles since the event's introduction in 1996. The US also held the previous record of 7:50.09.
``For us to break the record by so far is amazing,'' said Stephanie Rice after collecting her third gold in Beijing, second only to Michael Phelps's five.
Rice helped set the 18th swimming world record so far in Beijing, 10 more than in Athens and four more than in Sydney. In the men's 100 meter freestyle, Alain Bernard of France edged Eamon Sullivan of Australia by the length of his right hand in 47.21 seconds. Bernard's time was the third-fastest in history and would have been a world record before the Beijing Games began. He and Sullivan have taken turns this week chopping .45 seconds off Bernard's old mark of 47.50.
``Today was not about the silver medal or the world record,'' Bernard said. ``It was about touching the wall.''
Today was the only day of the nine-day competition in which Phelps didn't go for a medal. Phelps, who broke the record for career gold medals yesterday by raising his total to 11, has five championships in Beijing and three more events to swim, the 100 butterfly, the 200 individual medley and the 400 medley relay. If he sweeps them, he will break Mark Spitz's record of seven golds in one Games, set in 1972.
Phelps won his semifinal in the individual-medley this morning in 1:57.70 and came second in his evening butterfly heat. ``In the first 50 I think I was about a body length behind,'' Phelps told reporters. ``I dug in and caught up.''
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