Yesterday in Zhaoqing, Jiangsu clinched back-to-back men's gymnastics team gold at China's 15th National Games, scoring 328.957 points to narrowly edge Hunan with 327.024 and secure their legacy.
The showdown had been written in advance after Hunan topped the qualifying round, setting the stage for a high-stakes duel between two powerhouse squads. Hunan's lineup featured Olympic all-around and team silver medalist Zhang Boheng alongside veterans Liao Jialei and Yang Jiaxing. Jiangsu countered with international competitors Sun Wei, Shi Cong and You Hao, plus young pommel horse specialist Hong Yanming.
The first rotation on floor exercise set an electrifying tone. Both teams delivered daring routines but paid for small mistakes, leaving just a 0.1-point gap on the scoreboard. Tension mounted as every tumble and landing carried championship weight.
The defining moment arrived on the pommel horse, where Hong Yanming delivered a world-beating routine worth 14.466 points—the highest single-apparatus score of the competition. That performance gave Jiangsu the breathing room they needed.
Fueled by Zhang Boheng's leadership, Hunan rallied in the final rotations, topping both parallel bars and horizontal bar. But repeated errors on other apparatus kept them from closing the gap. In the end, Jiangsu's consistent depth proved decisive.
As the dust settles in Zhaoqing, this rivalry promises even more drama at future events—proof that in gymnastics, margins are thin but legacies endure.
Reference(s):
Jiangsu retains men's gymnastics team title at 15th National Games
cgtn.com
