South Korea’s all-conquering women archers won their 11th straight Olympic gold medal yesterday but it took a bull’s-eye on the final arrow to beat China in the Athens teams event final.
In a 27-arrow shootout, individual gold medalist Park Sung-hyun fired maximum 10-point score with the last shot to clinch the title 241-240.
Taiwan took the bronze medal after beating France by 14 points in a shootout for third place. Korea’s women have won every individual and team gold medal they have ever contested since first competing in archery at the Games in 1984 - a feat unmatched in any other sport.
The team event was introduced at their home Games in 1988.
The other two members of the Korean team were Athens individual silver medalist Lee Sung-jin and Yun Mi-jin, who now has three archery golds after winning the individual and teams titles in Sydney four years ago.
China trailed by four points with six shots to go, but fought back to narrow the difference to a single point with an arrow to go.
Park then held her nerve and hit the golden centre of the target, and raised her fists in the air in triumph.
Fittingly, for one of the Games’ greatest sporting dynasties the Koreans were crowned champions at one of sport’s most heralded venues, the marble home of the first modern Games in 1896, the Panathinaiko Stadium.
In a rare show of emotion from the steely Koreans, Lee openly wept on the podium. The trio then acknowledged their small band of vocal, flag-waving supporters by linking arms, kneeling and bowing.
The Chinese team comprised He Ying, Zhang Juanjuan and Lin Sang.
