Weightlifter Chen gets China's first gold medal

BEIJING - China marked the first day of competition in the Beijing Olympics with a quick gold medal - just not the one it expected.

Katerina Emmons of the Czech Republic won the first gold of the Games in the women's 10-meter air rifle Saturday after the home pressure got to defending champion Du Li.

Chinese fans didn't have to wait long for their opening title. Chen Xiexia won the women's 48-kilogram weightlifting gold medal about an hour after Du's defeat.

"I have been thinking of winning a medal, but never thought it would turn out to be the first gold medal for China," Chen told reporters.

Supporters packed into the Beijing Shooting Range Hall to watch Du, who never got higher than fourth after an opening 9.8 score and finished fifth. Emmons, a bronze medalist at the Athens Games in 2004, scored an Olympic-record 503.5 points after registering a maximum 400 points to qualify for the final.

Du, a world champion who had complained about expectations from home fans in the buildup to China's first Olympics as host, left the arena in tears.

"I wasn't fully prepared for the pressure of competing at home," Du told reporters after qualifying for the final with 399 points and ending with 499.6.

Already a world champ, Chen secured China's first gold medal with a total lift of 212 kilograms (467 pounds), setting Olympic records in both the snatch and clean-and-jerk portions.