China strikes first gold in 2012 Summer Olympics
Monday, July 30, 2012
(Image missing from Commons: image; log)
Yi Siling, a Chinese shooting competitor nicknamed the "Shooting Beauty" in China, won the first gold medal awarded at the 2012 Summer Olympic Games held in London. Teammate Yu Dan received the bronze medal, and Poland's Sylwia Bogacka earned the silver in Saturday's women's 10 metre air rifle final competition.
Bogacka was the leader midway through the final, but shot a 9.7 in the eighth round. Yi shot 10.7 in that round, then fired solid 10.3 and 10.5 shots afterwards, and finished with a total of 502.9 points. Bogaka shot an almost perfect 10.8 in her final attempt, finishing second with 502.2 and besting Yu, third with 501.5.
Yi, also the Asian Games champion, earned her quota spot by winning the 2010 Munich world women’s 10-metre air rifle championship. The 23-year-old left-handed shooter from Guangdong province has been competing for China since 2009.
China's gold and bronze mark the first time in 24 years a team has won two medals in the event.
Sources
- "Siling Yi" — 2012 London Olympic Games, July 30, 2012 (date of access)
- Patrick Johnston (Reuters). "China's Yi Siling wins first gold of London Games" — Yahoo! News, July 28, 2012
- Associated Press. "Yi Siling of China wins 10-meter air rifle, claims 1st gold medal of the London Olympics" — The Washington Post, July 28, 2012
