© FIG Photo
BEIJING, Aug. 18, 2008 – 2008 Olympic all-around champion Nastia Liukin of Parker, Texas, claimed the silver medal on the uneven bars at the 2008 Olympic Games, held at the National Indoor Stadium in Beijing, China, bringing her Olympic medal total to four (one gold, two silver, one bronze). Liukin and China’s He Kexin both posted scores of 16.725, but He was awarded the gold medal over Liukin due to a tiebreaker based on deductions. China’s Yang Yilin earned the bronze medal with a score of 16.650.
“I don’t have any regrets in my training plan or in the routine that I performed today,” Liukin said. “I have four Olympic medals and I’m tied with my dad now. It’s a little sad (not to win gold on uneven bars), but at the same time, it’s great to have four medals.
“I won the biggest competition in gymnastics (the women’s all-around). Missing out on the gold medal today is a little hard to take, but when I look back at this week, I couldn’t be more proud of my accomplishments.”
The tiebreak went to two levels to determine the gold-medal winner. The first tiebreak took the average of the four counting B (execution) jury deductions, which meant that the highest and lowest deductions were dropped and the remaining four were averaged. Liukin and He averaged the same deduction, a 0.975, so there was a second tiebreak level. In the second level, the three lowest of the four counting B (execution) jury deductions were averaged. Liukin averaged a 0.966 with He averaging a 0.933, so because He’s deduction average was lower, she was awarded the gold medal. Tiebreak results
Liukin, along with 2008 Olympic all-around silver-medalist Shawn Johnson of West Des Moines, Iowa, and 2008 Olympic team bronze-medalist Jonathan Horton of Houston, will compete tomorrow beginning at 6 p.m. on the final day of individual event finals. Liukin and Johnson are in the balance beam finals, and Horton is competing on the horizontal bar.
Liukin is on track to tie the U.S. gymnastics record of five Olympic medals at one Olympics currently held by Shannon Miller, who claimed five (two silver and three bronze) at the 1992 Olympic Games. Liukin now has won four medals at the 2008 Olympic Games: gold, all-around; silver, team and uneven bars; and bronze, floor exercise.
China’s Chen Yibing claimed the gold medal on still rings with a 16.600. China’s Yang Wei was second with a 16.425 and the Ukraine’s Oleksandr Vorobiov was third with a 16.325.
Poland’s Leszek Blanik won men’s vault, also through a tiebreaker, with a score of 16.537, the same score posted by silver-medalist Thomas Bouhail of France. Russia’s Anton Golotsutskov finished third with a 16.475.
In women’s trampoline, China’s He Wenna won the gold medal with a score of 37.80, followed by Canada’s Karen Cockburn in second with a 37.00 and Uzbekistan’s Ekaterina Khilko in third with a 36.90.
2008 Olympic Games
National Indoor Stadium
Beijing, China
Aug. 18, 2008
Individual event finals, day two of three
Women
Uneven bars
1. HE Kexin, CHN, 16.725
2. LIUKIN Nastia, USA, 16.725
3. YANG Yilin, CHN, 16.650
4. TWEDDLE Beth, GBR, 16.625
5. KOVAL Anastasiia, UKR, 16.375
6. SEMENOVA Ksenia, RUS, 16.325
7. NISTOR Steliana, ROU, 15.575
8. ZGOBA Dariya, UKR, 14.875
Men
Still rings
1. CHEN Yibing, CHN, 16.600
2. YANG Wei, CHN, 16.425
3. VOROBIOV Oleksandr, UKR, 16.325
4. COPPOLINO Andrea, ITA, 16.225
5. PINHEIRO RODRIGUES Danny, FRA, 16.225
6. MORANDI Matteo, ITA, 16.200
7. STANESCU Robert, ROU, 15.825
8. JOVTCHEV Jordan, BUL, 15.525
Vault
1. BLANIK Leszek, POL, 16.537
2. BOUHAIL Thomas, FRA, 16.537
3. GOLOTSUTSKOV Anton, RUS, 16.475
4. DRAGULESCU Marian, ROU, 16.225
5. CARANOBE Benoit, FRA, 16.062
6. KASPEROVICH Dmitry, BLR, 16.050
7. KOCZI Flavius, ROU, 15.925
8. BOTELLA Isaac, ESP, 15.737
Trampoline
Women
1. HE Wenna, CHN, 37.80
2. COCKBURN Karen, CAN, 37.00
3. KHILKO Ekaterina, UZB, 36.90
4. MOVCHAN Olena, UKR, 36.60
5. KARAVAEVA Irina, RUS, 36.20
6. GOLOVINA Luba, GEO, 36.10
7. MACLENNAN Rosannagh, CAN, 35.50
8. DOGONADZE Anna, GER, 18.90