BEIJING — Shawn Johnson finally got her Olympic gold medal in the last event of the women’s competition Tuesday, the balance beam.
Johnson, bothered by a headache before the competition, nailed her routine that was chock-full of difficult tricks, earning a 16.225.
The world champion, who already had a silver behind fellow American Nastia Liukin in the all-around, and a silver on floor and in the team event, edged Liukin, who finished with a gold, three silvers and a bronze.
“It’s crazy,” Johnson said. “I remember seeing Nastia have hers from the all-around, and it is so pretty. . . . It’s the best feeling ever.”
China’s Cheng Fei took the bronze.
• Zou Kai of China won the men’s high bar gold medal, and American Jonathan Horton took silver. Germany’s Fabien Hambuechen, the world champion, got the bronze.
American Harper takes gold in 100 hurdles
Dawn Harper grabbed gold for Team USA in the 100-meter hurdles final.
That came after American Sanya Richards, the overriding favorite in the women’s 400 final, lost a two-step lead in the homestretch when her hamstring tightened. Passed by two runners, Britain’s Christine Ohuruogo (gold) and Jamaican Chericka Williams (silver), she ended up with the bronze.
• Gerd Kanter of Estonia won the gold medal in the men’s discus with a throw of 225 feet, 9 inches.
Bachman making progress
ROCHESTER, Minn. — Barbara Bachman, the wife of an American killed in Beijing, is starting to talk and walk short distances while recovering at the Mayo Clinic.
Her husband, Todd, was killed in an Aug. 9 attack at a tourist attraction.
Footnotes.
Sylvia Fowles scored 26 points and grabbed 14 rebounds to lead the U.S. women’s basketball team to a 104-60 rout of South Korea to advance to the semifinals.
• Brandon Knight gave up five hits over 6 1/3 innings, and Dexter Fowler, a Rockies minor-leaguer, went 3-for-3, to lead the U.S. to a 4-2 victory over Taiwan.
• Americans Todd Rogers and Phil Dalhausser advanced to the beach volleyball gold-medal match. The world champions beat Georgia 21-11, 21-13 in the semifinals today.
• The U.S. women’s volleyball team defeated Italy 3-2 (20-25, 25-21, 19-25, 25-18, 15-6) in the quarters.
• Argentina blanked Brazil 3-0 to advance to face Nigeria in the men’s soccer gold-medal match.
• The U.S. women’s softball team went extra innings to beat Japan 4-1 in the ninth today.
• Russia’s Larisa Ilchenko won gold in the women’s 10-kilometer marathon swim today.
• He Chong won gold in men’s 3-meter springboard, while Canada’s Alexandre Despatie took the silver and China’s Qin Kai bronze.
• China’s Lu Chunlong won the men’s gold in the trampoline. Canada’s Jason Burnett won silver, and China’s Dong Dong took the bronze.
• Britain’s Chris Hoy won gold in the cycling sprint, edging teammate Jason Kenny.
• Britain’s Victoria Pendleton edged Australia’s Anna Meares for the gold in the women’s cycling sprint.
• The Netherlands’ Anky van Grunsven won the gold in equestrian individual dressage.
The Associated Press
