London Olympics badminton: China`s mixed doubles duo wins first badminton gold

London: China`s mixed doubles players Zhang Nan and Zhao Yunlei beat their teammates Xu Chen and Ma Jin at the Wembley Arena Friday afternoon, clinching the first gold medal in badminton events here at the Olympics.

Their scores were 21-11 and 21-17. Xu and Ma snatched the silver, reports Xinhua. It is the first time China bagged both the gold and the silver medals of the event at the Olympics. Zhanga-Zhao, the World No. 1 seed, dominated the court from the beginning, while their rivals made more mistakes. In the second game, they scored eight points in a row. Xu and Ma rallied to catch up, collecting four points before match point, but they were too far behind. After the match, the excited Zhang lay down on the court, before throwing his shoes to the crowd and waving the national flag as celebration. "The gold medal is a recognition for our training and preparation before the Olympics," Zhao said. "And it signals a new starting point as well. I didn`t have a goal before coming here, just telling myself to do the best." Unlike her, Zhang said he came here to get the gold medal which China missed in 2008. The pair bagged the silver at the 2010 Guangzhou Asian Games. In the same year the won seven golds in Grand Prix and Super Series. IANS