zatoicchi
14.08.08, 09:45
BEIJING (AP)—Yang Wei clapped as he walked past the vault judges, pumped his fists at the crowd and flashed a thumbs-up for the cameras. He even exchanged high-fives with the competition.
Denied in Sydney and disappointed in Athens, he is finally an Olympic champion after winning the men’s all-around Thursday. It wasn’t close, either. Yang finished with 94.575 points, nearly three points ahead of Japan’s Kohei Uchimura. Benoit Caranobe of France won the bronze.
With each day bringing another gold medal, gymnastics is fast becoming China’s domain at the Beijing Olympics. And no one is a bigger star than Yang.
After eight years of waiting, he’s certainly earned it.
“Today was perfect,” he said. “I felt tired before the competition, but after it I feel relaxed.”
Yang Wei finally gets gold in men's gymnastics (http://sports.yahoo.com/olympics/beijing/gymnastics/news?slug=ap-gym-mensall-around&prov=ap&type=lgns)
Denied in Sydney and disappointed in Athens, he is finally an Olympic champion after winning the men’s all-around Thursday. It wasn’t close, either. Yang finished with 94.575 points, nearly three points ahead of Japan’s Kohei Uchimura. Benoit Caranobe of France won the bronze.
With each day bringing another gold medal, gymnastics is fast becoming China’s domain at the Beijing Olympics. And no one is a bigger star than Yang.
After eight years of waiting, he’s certainly earned it.
“Today was perfect,” he said. “I felt tired before the competition, but after it I feel relaxed.”
Yang Wei finally gets gold in men's gymnastics (http://sports.yahoo.com/olympics/beijing/gymnastics/news?slug=ap-gym-mensall-around&prov=ap&type=lgns)