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Roundup: China Keeps Machine Rolling, DPRK Joins Gold Map
China kept its gold machine in full motion by adding six more titles on day four of the World University Games on Sunday, as the Democratic People's Republic of Korea joined the gold tally through a diminutive gymnast.
Chinese lifted six more golds in gymnastics, swimming, fencing and diving to remain atop at the medal table with 21 golds.
Son Un Hui claimed DPR Korea's first gold in this games with a victory in the women's vault.
"I didn't expect this gold medal, and what I had been thinking was to perform to my best," said Son, a gymnastics student at the DPRK University of Physical Education.
When asked about how she would celebrate the victory, the 20- year-old gymnast said: "I will spend this wonderful day with the whole gymnastics team."
Son chalked up a low score of 9.075 points, yet good enough for gold and to beat joint runners-up Russian Olga Ugarova and Poland's Joanna Skowronsk by 0.038 points.
Chinese Liang Fuliang posted 9.525 points for the men's floor title and his teammate Zhang Shangwu received 9.675 points to win the rings final.
Chinese team captain Dong Fangxiao scored 9.612 points to lead teammate Liu Wei to a 1-2 finish in the women's floor final.
Lioudmila Ejova added the women's beam gold to her all-around crown won on Saturday and her teammate Ekaterina Privlova triumphed in the women's uneven bars final.
Romanian Ioan Suciu emerged winner in the men's pommel horse, Frenchman Benoit Caranobe took the men's vault top honor and Japanese Tomita Hiroyuki grabbed the men's parallel bars event.
Australian Rizzo Philippe held off a combined challenge by Chinese Xing Aowei and Liang Fuliang, taking the last gymnastics gold of the games in the men's horizontal bars.
In swimming, Chinese mermaid Han Xue beat Ukraine's Olga Mukomol to take the women's 50m freestyle final, but she couldn't stop Ukraine from being the biggest winner in the pool with two golds and as many silvers.
Han Xue clocked 25.62 seconds for the gold, out-touching Mukomol by 0.1 second.
Oleg Lisogor of Ukraine won the men's 50m breaststroke gold and his teammate Igor Snitko touched home first in the men's 400m final.
The United States also won two swimming golds as Peter Marshall finished joint first with Poland's Mariusz Siembida in the men's 50m backstroke final and the U.S. foursome won the women's 4x100m freestyle relay.
Japanese Takahiro Moro beat his rivals to win the 200m individual medley and Russian Igor Martchenko landed the men's 100 m butterfly gold.
The sole fencing gold on Sunday went to Chinese Yang Shaoqi, who, ranked 19th in the world, subdued Ukraine's Anna Garina 15-11 in the women's individual epee final.
Russian Tatiana Logunova, ranked third in the world, ninth- ranked Sherraine Schalm of Canada, 14th Diana Romagnolitakouk of Switzerland, 18th Evceidis Ortiz Puentes of Cuba and 22nd Andrea Rentmeister of Austria all crashed out of the contention earlier.
China's dual world diving champion Guo Jingjing took her second title through women's 3m springboard to make it five golds for China.
Guo, who took gold in the 1m springboard Thursday, won over her teammate Li Rongjuan by an astonishing 53 points.
Li, who finished second in the 1m springboard, got her second silver with 540.78 points.
After clinching her second bronze medal at the games, Russian Natalia Oumyskova said her country didn't send top divers here due to age restrictions.
"There are many good divers in Russia who are much better than me," said the 19-year-old, who finished third in both 1m and 3m springboard.
"But because of the age requirements for the University Games, they can't come," she added.
Only athletes aged between 18 and 28 are allowed to take part in the games.
"I would like to be second, but finishing third is OK," said a smiling Oumyskova, who is studying coaching at the Russian State Academy of Physical Culture.
Oumyskova praised Chinese divers for their outstanding skills, saying they are role models for Russian divers.
"China have surpassed Russia in terms of technique. We should learn from them," she said.
Guo Jingjing will have a shot at her third gold on Tuesday.
"Our team decided at the last minute that I should take part in the synchronized platform (instead of the synchronized springboard)," Guo said.
"My partner Cai Yuyan and I have only practiced for 10 days. But I'll try my best to win."
Judo powerhouse Japan scooped two golds on the mat.
Midori Shintani, runner-up of the women's over-78kg category in the 2001 World Championships, triumphed in the women's judo open category final by overcoming South Korean Cho Su Hee.
Masat Uchishiba added another gold for Japan when he defeated Vakht Khositashvili of Georgia in the men's under-60kg judo final.
In the women's under 48kg category, Cuban Danie Carrion denied China a fifth gold as she nipped Gao Lijuan in the dying seconds of the final.
South Korea secured the last judo gold of the day through Jang Sung Ho in the men's judo open category.
China tops the medal tally with 21 golds, 16 silvers and 11 bronzes, followed by Japan with a 7-9-10 record, the United States 5-7-3, Russia 5-6-11, Ukraine 5-4-4 and Cuba 3-1-1.
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