INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
For newly crowned Chinese national team champion Zhang Qingying, the best birthday gift was her first individual all-around gold medal.On
Tuesday, one day before her 18th birthday, Zhang – nicknamed "Big Zhang" – delivered strong performances across all four events to win
the women's all-around title with a score of 54.333 at the National Gymnastics Championships in Nanning, south China's Guangxi Zhuang
Autonomous Region.Just two days earlier, Zhang had led Zhejiang to the women's team title."I wasn't that stable or confident as a gymnast
years ago, but now I've grown up and gained more courage through daily hard training," said Zhang, proudly showing off her gold medal and a
white traditional silk handicraft ball awarded to her
"I can't dream of any better gift for my 18th birthday."All three medalists posted personal bests
Seventeen-year-old Qin Xinyi got silver with a score of 54.099, edging out fellow first-time podium finisher Zhang Yihan – known as "Mini
Zhang" – who took bronze with 53.232."After recent training, I feel that I've matured significantly," said Qin
"During the competition, I wasn't that nervous and maintained a calm mindset."Zhang Yihan debuted a new floor routine during the final and
was pleased with the results
"Though they were not Olympic-standard, I still enjoyed my new routines and the atmosphere here," she said.
