HOME / NEWS / SPORTS

How old is Guan Chenchen? Chinese beats Simone Biles to Olympic gold on balance beam

Xijing Tang of China took the silver while Simone Biles of the US bagged the bronze

Guan Chenchen of China, the eighth and final gymnast to compete in the women's balance beam, won the gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics. At the Ariake Gymnastics Center, the 16-year-old scored a difficulty of 6.600 and an execution of 8.033 for a total score of 14.633.

Xijing Tang of China took the silver medal and Simone Biles of the United States, an athlete that the world looked towards for this victory, will go home with the bronze. Tang scored 14.233 and Biles, 14.000.

READ MORE

How Simone Biles braved kidney stone that left her crawling in pain to dominate world championships

Piers Morgan slammed for ridiculing Simone Biles' Olympics withdrawal over mental health

Born in Jingzhou, a city in the southern Hubei province, Chenchen took up gymnastics in November 2010 in Xiantao, as per her Olympics profile. She was reportedly an active girl at a young age and tried several sports. A family member recommended her parents introduce her to gymnastics, the profile said. The profile also added that Chenchen looked up to Biles as her idol, and today she managed to beat her. 

Biles recently created global controversy after withdrawing from the individual all-around final at the Tokyo Olympics citing mental health reasons. "After further medical evaluation, Simone Biles has withdrawn from the final individual all-around competition at the Tokyo Olympic Games, in order to focus on her mental health," USA Gymnastics said in a statement. "We wholeheartedly support Simone's decision and applaud her bravery in prioritizing her well-being. Her courage shows, yet again, why she is a role model for so many."

This was Chenchen’s first Olympics. She is a specialist on the balance beam -- something that was evidenced enough in the event she won. During her turn, the young competitor flawlessly executed split leaps, back handsprings, flips and an aerial before flying into the air for her double pike dismount, and landing to applause. 

The teen received considerable praise online. “I cannot emphasize enough how incredible that gold medal-winning performance is from Guan Chenchen. She did one routine at the beginning of the Olympics and then the VERY LAST routine of the entire Games. What fortitude. What a Queen!” said a Twitter user.

Though many, while applauding her, said her start was somewhat shaky. “Guan Chenchen starts out VERY nervous, has a check on her layout series and misses part of her leap connection into the transverse jumps. Calmed down after that and did some BEAUTIFUL work. Strong double pike dismount. Awaiting the score, heart pounding... 14.633 TO WIN THE GOLD!” wrote a Twitter user. Another person tweeted, “Guan Chenchen scores a 14.633 (6.6 D) for a shakier routine than in Qualifications, but good enough for GOLD!!!!!”