China sweeps four golds at Houston gymnastics invitational

Chinese gymnasts pocketed three gold medals Saturday at the Houston National Invitational, bringing their total golds to four.

The Chinese continued their gold haul in Houston Saturday, after wining the men's team title a day before, snatching golds in pommel horse, rings, and parallel bars.

Yu Liang was crowned in pommel horse, with 14.850 points, and his teammate Yan Renpeng took the silver.

Yu was also the champion in parallel bars, and his teammate Wang Yongchao came third.

In rings, Qu Yexin won the gold with 15.05 points, and the bronze medal went to Wang Yongchao.

Wang Haoran added an all-around silver and a vault silver for the Chinese team.

All five Chinese gymnasts came from Shandong Province. China sends no women athletes to this year's Houston invitational.

"I am satisfied with the overall results," said Sun Yiyang, coach of the Chinese team. But Sun said he was not so satisfied with the results of specific events Saturday.

"The results basically meet our expectations. But I did not expect our athletes to flaw on high-bar. We are strong in high-bar, pommel horse and floor exercise," said Sun.

"Surprisingly, we won the gold medal in rings, " Sun said. But Sun said Qu's rings gold was a worthy one, because his performance Saturday was his best in the past several months.

The Houston invitational provides a platform for Chinese athletes and coaches to communicate with their foreign counterparts and also is a warm-up for the Chinese gymnasts before China's National Games, according to Sun.

It's the seventh time for China to compete at the annual Houston National Invitational. The three-day event, which kicked off Friday, attracts gymnasts from across the United States and about 10 other countries this year.