Flying High: Cyprus win first gold medal at Commonwealth Games

DEMETRIS Krasias said he always believed in his potential after the 18-year-old won Cyprus’ first gold medal of the Commonwealth Games with a brilliant performance in the Artistic Gymnastics Horizontal Bar competition in New Delhi.

The judges were left in no doubt after seeing the teenager’s performance, as he racked up a total of 13.900 points late on Friday night.

Anderson Loran of Canada finished in second place with 13.625 points, while Englishman Max Whitlock took bronze with 13.575 points.

This is the second medal for Cyprus at the Games, both of them coming in Artistic Gymnastics. On Thursday, Herodotos Georgallas captured bronze in the Rings final.

After showing off his massive talent at the XIII Games of the Small States of Europe last summer in Cyprus and then following it up with another great display at the Mediterranean Games in Pescara a few months later, many thought it was only a matter of time before Krasias broke through on the global stage. He didn’t disappoint in India.

“I feel vindicated that all the effort I have put in over the years has now paid off,” the clearly overjoyed Cypriot said afterwards.

“I always believed in my potential, I believed in my training program and I am just concentrating on my performances.

“In this event there were very good athletes competing and my initial goal was to finish between third and fifth place.

“However, once I executed my routine, I started believing in the gold medal,” Krasias, who has been involved in Artistic Gymnastics for 13 years, said.

Compatriot Constantine Aristotelous chose to execute the most difficult program of all the athletes competing but the decision backfired as he could only finish eighth with 12.400 points. Another Cypriot, Panayiotis Aristotelous, competed in the Parallel Bars Final but could also do no better than eighth position with 12.745 points after making a serious mistake and almost falling.

Elsewhere at the Games, Cypriot pair Marilena Constantinou and Fanoula Theofanous Charalambous also finished eighth in the Pairs 10M Air Rifle Women’s Final at the Dr. K. Singh Shooting Range with a 772-46x total.

Malaysian duo Nur Suryani Mohamed Taibi and Nur Ayuni Halim won the gold medal with a 793-59x score. Listen

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