By Gabrielle Tétrault-Farber
PARIS (Reuters) -Algeria’s Kaylia Nemour became the first African gymnast to win an Olympic medal when she secured the gold with a breathtaking routine on the asymmetric bars at the Paris Games on Sunday that wowed the crowd in Bercy Arena.
The 17-year-old’s fast-paced routine featuring a number of complex release-and-catch manoeuvres delighted the crowd who came to support a gymnast who had previously represented France.
Fans roared and jumped to their feet as soon as Nemour completed her dismount. She immediately broke down in tears as she handed Algeria their first medal of the Paris Olympics, with her performance scoring a staggering 15.700 points.
Nemour was still in complete disbelief after the competition.
“I can’t believe this is happened,” the teenager said after winning her first gold medal at a major global competition. “This is too much. I have no words.”
Nemour was up after China’s Qiu Qiyuan, the 2023 world champion, who had executed a spectacular routine to briefly top the standings with 15.500 points.
“When I saw her result of 15.500 points, I told myself that I would really need to fight,” Nemour said. “I re-focused quickly and got the best mark of my life, and it was the right time to get it.”
The Algerian Olympic Committee issued a statement calling Nemour a legend.
“You showed the world the strength and determination of Algeria with your wonderful victory,” the statement said.
U.S. gymnast Sunisa Lee, who claimed a second successive Olympic bronze on the apparatus with 14.800 points, could be seen cheering for Nemour throughout her routine.
“I was really aiming for the third place because I knew I actually really wanted Kaylia to win, just because she’s so incredible,” Lee said.
Nina Derwael of Belgium, the champion at the Tokyo Games, finished 0.034 of a point off the podium.
British gymnast Rebecca Downie’s hopes of finishing on the podium were shattered after she fell off the apparatus while attempting her signature release-and-catch move. She finished seventh out of eight finalists.
She returned to complete her routine, nailing her dismount and broke into a smile as she saluted the crowd, ending her Olympic efforts in Paris.
(Reporting by Gabrielle Tétrault-Farber, Karen Braun, Chang-Ran Kim and Rory Carroll; Editing by Pritha Sarkar)
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