 Golden goodbye
(China Daily)
Updated: 2008-08-23 10:32 Anne-Caroline Chausson of France won the women's BMX gold medal yesterday, a day in which crash-filled runs showed the extreme edge of the sport on its Olympic debut. Chausson, a veteran rider who came out of retirement to compete in the Olympics, emerged champion after favorite Shanaze Reade of Britain crashed out in the final curve in an attempt to overtake the Frenchwoman. Chausson's teammate Laetitia le Corguille won the silver and American Jill Kintner took the bronze. "I was very fast on the track today," said Chausson, 30, for whom this was the last competitive BMX race. "It's really the work of two years to end up here. It's an immense satisfaction to get to here. "Unlike other days, I managed to disable Reade." Two-time world champion Reade had come back from a crash in the first run of the semifinal to qualify with the best time and the choice of gate in the final. But she was behind Chausson coming into the final turn and as she tried to get on the inside she clipped the Frenchwoman's wheel and went down. Reade said later that she felt Chausson had been at fault, but Chausson believed the mistake was Reade's. "I took a route that was not too open, and I was pretty surprised to see her trying to go inside me. I think she made a mistake," Chausson said. Silver winner le Corguille said Reade's bike touched her after the crash but she managed to stay on and follow her compatriot across the line. Kintner was delighted with her bronze. "First woman for America, in the first event ever, first medal, it's a piece of history," Kintner said. "I'm so glad I can represent and be a part of it." Agencies  (China Daily 08/23/2008 page8) |
