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Roundup: FISU Lauds Beijing Games Best Ever, Worries It Will Be Best Forever
World university sports body FISU has mixed feelings about the 21st World University Games.
FISU chief George E. Killian hailed the 21st Universiade the best ever version, but he worried about the Beijing Games has set a standard too high for future hosts to follow.
"We owe the Chinese a lot," Killian told a press conference Friday morning, saying Beijing has done a "super" job in hosting the games.
"I think China has set such a high standard that it's going to be difficult for Daegu or anyone else to match," said the president.
"Maybe in the future, what the Chinese did would create a problem for us because nobody can beat them. So only time will tell."
Daegu, South Korea, will host the next Universiade in 2003.
There were 16 gold medals on offer on the penultimate day of the games.
Ukraine's Tamara Yerofeyeva turned out the queen of rhythmic gymnastics on Friday as completed a four-gold sweep in all-around, hoop, rope and ball events.
Russian Olga Belova, all-around bronze medalist, took the clubs crown.
The United States stamped their domination in women's basketball by beating China for the second time, 87-69, to win gold.
The Americans led for most of the game to smash China's hope to store the first gold in the Universiade since 1993.
The Czech Republic won the bronze medals with a 91-71 victory over Lithuania.
After a scrambled start, Americans picked up the offense first with Jenny Roulier's three-pointer.
The Chinese women, who lost to the U.S. in the second round, produced great pressure on the board and forced a series of offensive rebounds to have the first basket on Hu Xiaotao's lay-up 1:40 minutes into the game.
They took a lead at 9-7 midway in the first quarter but saw Americans use a 12-2 run, in which Ayana Walker scored nine points, to make it 22-16.
Both sides executed well on offense and tried hard to put the game under their own control when they fought out a 20-20 second- quarter match, with the score-line at 45-41 in favor of the Americans.
The third quarter seemed to be called up with the same ending, but point guard Ashley McElhiney beat the buzzer to hit a 3- pointer, extending the lead to 65-58 to enter the fourth quarter.
No miracle took place in the fourth quarter.
Chen Luyun scored the first basket of the quarter before the Americans broke away with 10 straight points.
China made a surge-up after that to close up at 67-77 with Miao Lijie's 3-pointer and two free-throws and Chen Nan's lay-up, but the time was fading and their efforts fell short.
In athletics, Chinese sprinter Li Xuemei won gold in the women's 200 meters with a time of 22.86 seconds, beating second- placed Belgian Kim Gevaert by 0.08 seconds.
The Asian record holder of 22.01 seconds bolted off the blocks and surged to a clear lead off the curve.
Marcin Urbas of Poland took the men's 200 meters dash in 20.56 seconds and Vita Palamar of Ukraine cleared 1.96 meters to win the women's high jump title.
Natasha Danvers of Britain clocked 54.94 seconds to claim the women's 400 meters hurdles and South African A. A. Myburgh took the men's 400 meters hurdles in 48.09.
American Kenwood K. Bell flew 17.22 to take the men's triple jump and Cuban Paul Duany Bueno won the grueling decathlon event with 8,069 points.
FISU vice president Ed Zemrau said on Friday Beijing has helped promote the Universiade by inviting International Olympic Committee (IOC) officials to attend the games.
IOC president Jacques Rogge, vice president Kevan Gosper and other eight IOC members visited the host city for the 2008 Olympic Games during the 11-day University Games.
"Most of those IOC members did not know how big the Universiade is, they were very surprised and I think have a better appreciation now about how important the Universiade is in the international sport as a multi-national and multi-sports event," said Zemrau.
The university sports ruling body is striving to make five stars, FISU's symbol, a recognizable mark around the world, said Killian.
"It's our job for us to use our brand, which is five stars, to make five stars recognizable around the world," he said. "This takes time, this takes money, this takes efforts."
The FISU head said they would learn from the International Olympic Committee (IOC) which has made a fame and a fortune through television.
"The IOC has one thing that we don't have, but we will have it because next week I will start trying on American television," Killian said.
Killian asked Beijing not to forget FISU and the Universiade 2001 when heading to the 2008 Olympic Games.
"In discussions with the mayor and other government officials, all that I ask them to do is: 'Don't forget FISU and don't forget Universiade 2001'," he said. "Because as far as I am concerned, this event is a step-in-stone to what you are going to do in 2008. "
Killian is assured that the Olympic Games in seven years time will be even better than the Universiade.
"It will be better, I don't know how, but I am sure," he said. "The IOC would have never chosen China if they did not honestly believe you could do a super job."
As a runner-away leader on the medal tally, the Chinese delegation said they should keep a sober mind and learn lessons from the World University Games in order to prepare themselves better for the 2008 Olympics.
China should not be carried away by the success and must stay cool-headed going to the 2004 and 2008 Olympics, Chinese delegation chief Li Furong said Friday morning.
"We've reached our goal of testing young athletes. I'm quite satisfied with the performances of both athletes and coaches," Li said.
All the 60 doping tests done on Chinese athletes so far were negative, Li added.
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