Olympics: Tuesday’s gymnastics results
LONDON >> China’s Deng Linlin won the gold on balance beam Tuesday, upstaging teammate and reigning world champion Sui Lu.
It was the second gold of the day for the Chinese, following Feng Zhe’s title on parallel bars. Epke Zonderland won gold on high bar, the first medal for a Dutch man and only the second Olympic medal overall for the Netherlands.
American Aly Raisman took a gold on floor exercise, about an hour after getting a bronze on balance beam.
She won the balance beam bronze after questioning her score when she initially finished fourth. Judges added an extra tenth to her routine’s difficulty after reviewing it. That gave her and Catalina Ponor identical scores of 15.066, but Raisman got the bronze and Ponor got bumped because the American’s execution score was higher.
Gabby Douglas, meanwhile, failed to add to her medal haul, finishing seventh on balance beam after a fall. Still, she’ll leave the London Olympics with two gold medals, including the all-around title, gymnastics’ biggest prize.
On parallel bars, Feng gave the Chinese men their third gymnastics gold medal, following the team competition and Zou Kai’s win on floor exercise. And they may not be finished, with Zou still to come on high bar, where he is the reigning world and Olympic champion.
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Feng flashed a thumbs-up as he walked out for the medals ceremony, and planted a big kiss on the gold after he got it.
Germany’s Marcel Nguyen was second, adding another silver to his one from the men’s all-around. Hamilton Sabot of France won the bronze.
Feng’s routine was filled with intricate combinations, yet he did them with the precision of an artist and the rhythm of a musician. He held his handstands for what seemed like forever, looking like a statue, and there wasn’t even the slightest hesitation as he went from one skill straight into another.
He hit the mat with a thud on his dismount and was pumping his fists even before he stood upright. He threw a roundhouse punch as he trotted off the podium, and his coach wrapped him in a big hug, pounding his back. When his score of 15.966 was posted, Feng, the 2010 world champion on parallel bars, nodded.
There were still six gymnasts to come, but it would take something pretty special to top Feng. And no one came close.
Nguyen’s routine was impressive, but the European champion took a hop forward on his dismount and needed to windmill his arms to steady himself.
Zonderland has long been one of the world’s best on high bar, his routine better than any circus act, and all that was missing was an Olympic medal. No longer.
He opened his routine with three straight release moves, not even pausing to catch his breath before tossing himself high into the air again. It’s high risk, high reward, and the crowd loved it, oohing and aahing as he flew so high he could have waved into the overhead camera.
He was a blur as he pirouetted on the bar, yet never looked as if he was on the verge of going out of control.
When he hit the mat, he let out a roar. American Jonathan Horton, up next, could only laugh and shake his head, knowing there was no way he — or anyone — could top that show.
He was right, with Zonderland scoring a 16.533 — a number not usually seen outside the vault. Zonderland broke into a grin when he saw the mark and pointed at the scoreboard.
It was the Netherlands’ first gymnastics medal since 1928, when the women’s team won gold.
Danell Leyva and Jonathan Horton finished fifth and sixth, respectively. The U.S. men leave the games with just one medal, Leyva’s bronze in the all-around.