Luo Xuejuan snatches first title at Chinese City Games
( 2003-10-22 15:34) (Xinhua)
Triple world champion Luo Xuejuan from Hangzhou clinched her first gold medal
by winning the women's 100 meters breaststroke on the third day of the fifth
Chinese City Games here on Tuesday.
Luo Xuejuan, 19, who swept 50m and 100m breaststroke as well as 4x100m medley
relay titles at the Barcelona World Championships in July, led all the way
through to victory in one minute 7.42 seconds in the 100m breaststroke. Her
teammate Qi Hui, 200m breaststroke world record holder (2:22.99) and bronze
medalist at the Worlds, finished second in 1""After the Worlds, the World
University Games and the National Swimming Championships, this is my fourth
competition in a row in three months. I felt tired but quite satisfied with my
form and result," Luo said at the press conference after the match.
"I hope to improve the result and claim a gold in Athens Olympic Games next
year, which is not only for myself but also for my country," she added.
Luo's teammate in the national team Zhan Shu, who won the women 's 4x100
relay event in Barcelona, also enjoyed her first gold as she triumphed in her
speciality 100m backstroke in 1:01.56, beating her closet rival Cheng Jiaru from
Guangzhou into the second place in 1"In the men's 200m freestyle final, the
15-year-old Zhang Lin put on an impressive performance as he grabbed the title
in 1:50. 14. Another 15-year-old Zhao Tao charged to the men's 100m backstroke
and won the first gold in 56.65 seconds for Hefei city at the swimming
competition.
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