Chang Hye-jin of South Korea completed an impressive Rio 2016 Olympic archery double on Thursday as she added the women’s individual title to her team success.
Chang beat German Lisa Unruh by three sets to one in the final to claim a second gold medal in Brazil.
The result handed South Korea their 22nd Olympic gold medal in archery, overtaking short track as the country’s most successful sport at the Olympic Games.
Chang narrowly took the first set 27-26 before Unruh immediately replied to level things up in the second.
A wayward Unruh arrow, which scored only a seven, handed the initiative back to Chang, who went ahead and closed out the match in the fourth and decisive set.
Chang becomes the second oldest Olympic champion, at 29, in the women’s individual competition since 1980, when Keto Losaberidze of the now defunct Soviet Union triumphed aged 31.
Chang dominated the entire competition, never once looking troubled.
She dropped a mere ten sets in six matches throughout and looked totally at ease once again when the pressure was on in the final.
“I’m very proud of myself for winning the Olympic gold medal.” said Chang.
“I kept thinking positively and trying to stay confident to win the final.”
Chang was also part of the South Korea trio which extended their remarkable winning streak in the women’s team archery event to eight straight Olympic Games.
Since the event was introduced back at Seoul 1988, the South Korean team have yet to lose a match.
The bronze medal contest in the women’s individual was been won by Chang’s team-mate Ki Bo-Bae.
The South Korean beat Mexico’s Alejandra Valencia to claim third place in a fifth set decider.
Ki, who won gold in this event in 2012, claimed her fourth career archery medal.
Only Hubert Van Innes of Belgium, South Korea’s Kim Soo-Nyung and France’s Julien Brule have collected more in archery in Olympic history.
By Max Winters
Republished with permission from insidethegames.biz