Women

China's Cheng Fei won her third gold medal of the tournament when she placed first on the balance beam, the last women's event, in tonight's apparatus finals.

Performing last of the eight finalists, Cheng made the most of her second chance for success on this event. She fell from the beam in qualifications, and barely made the eight-gymnast cut-off for the final.

Cheng's performance tonight was steadier than in qualifications, and despite a couple of tentative moments, she finished well for a score of 15.725.

After just missing out on an all-around medal earlier in the tournament, Australia’s Lauren Mitchell took the silver medal on balance beam. Her routine featured a variety of interesting skills, including an unusual performance.

American gymnast Chellsie Memmel placed third, after solidly landing her acrobatic skills and leaps. Memmel, the 2005 world silver medalist on balance beam, finished one position higher than her teammate Bridget Sloan.

Australia's Daria Joura placed fifth, and Japan's Keiko Mukumoto placed sixth. Mukumoto, who qualified for the final in second place, nearly fell after an acrobatic combination.

This final was shaky for several gymnasts, including Greece's Stefani Bisbikou, who fell once, and Canada's Kristina Vaculik, who fell twice.

Men

Liang Mengsheng and Feng Zhe made the most of the Chinese men’s last chance for glory in the tournament by winning the gold and silver medal, respectively, on parallel bars in tonight's apparatus finals.

Since no Chinese gymnasts qualified for the final on horizontal bar (the other men's event that took place on this last day of the tournament), Liang and Zhe carried their team's hopes tonight.

Competing first , Korea's Yang Taeyoung performed cleanly and watched his score of 15.750 keep him in the lead until Liang performed. Yang eventually earned the bronze medal.

Liang performed sixth and took a step on his dismount, but this minor error did not detract fromhis otherwise solid routine. He scored 15.800, and overtook Kim for the lead with just two gymnasts left to compete.

Feng, the top qualifier, performed last. He executed a smooth routine, but slightly struggled on a handstand and took a small step on his dismount. Feng's score of 15.775 placed him just behind Liang in the final standing.

In the final event of the artistic gymnastics tournament, Germany's Fabian Hambuechen provided a shock when he landed his dismount on his back. This major error from Hambuechen, the reigning world champion and leading qualifier on this event, gave his opponents the chance to take over.

Korea's Kim Jihoon performed a spectacular routine that included two aerial moves. Competing seventh, Yasuke Hoshi of Japan also performed two aerial moves, but fought to maintain his balance when he landed his dismount. Kim finished with the gold medal, and Hoshi took the silver.

Hoshi's teammate, Kazuhito Tanaka, performed a more conservative routine than the top two finishers, his routine was steady enough to earn the bronze medal. /JC