Rotterdam:Taiwanese gymnast Tang Chia-hung clinched a historic gold medal in the men's horizontal bar final at the Artistic Gymnastics World Championships in Rotterdam, Netherlands. Tang's final performance earned him a score of 14.966, marking the first time a Taiwanese gymnast has won a title at the world championships.
According to Focus Taiwan, Tang entered the final round after advancing in second place from the qualifiers with a score of 14.566, which included a difficulty score of 6.000 and an execution score of 8.566. In the final, he elevated his difficulty score to 6.600, the highest among the eight finalists, enabling him to secure the gold despite an unsteady landing.
Taiwan has previously achieved two silver medals and one bronze at the Artistic Gymnastics World Championships. Chang Feng-chih secured silver in the men's vault in 1993, while Lee Chih-kai won silver and bronze in the men's pommel horse in 2019 and 2018, respectively.
Reflecting on his journey, Tang shared that he had adjusted his mindset after finishing fifth and missing a medal at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games in Japan. With the assistance of his coach Huang Bo-rui and a sports psychologist, Tang approached the world championships final as a practice session to stay calm and composed.
Tang expressed gratitude to his supporters, including coaches, teammates, and trainers. He credited his wife, Tseng Jo-yu, for providing mental support, as her presence helped him recharge during a challenging training period.
Coach Huang highlighted the high difficulty of Tang's routine, emphasizing that Tang's consistent training was key to his success at the championships, organized by the Fédération Internationale de Gymnastique from October 17-25.
