China overcame an early setback to win two gold medals as Olympic competition unfolded on Saturday after a grand opening ceremony.
The host country's hope of winning the first gold was shattered when Du Li, gold medalist at the Athens Games, cracked under pressure of home crowd expectations and finished a disappointing fifth in the women's 10-meter air rifle.
Katerina Emmons, the wife of American shooter Matt Emmons, captured the coveted gold for the Czech Republic. She equaled the world record in the qualification round and her winning total of 503.5 points broke the Olympic record of 502 set by Du Li four years ago.
It was Chen Xiexia who fired the start gun on the Chinese gold rush. The 25-year-old took gold in the women's 48kg weightlifting, setting two Olympic records in the category.
"I'm very happy to be informed (it's the first gold for China). It added different meaning to the medal," said Chen.
Little-known Pang Wei made amends for compatriot Du's failure when he grabbed the men's 10-meter air pistol gold with a score of 688.2 points.
Friday night saw the long-awaited opening ceremony showcasing the country's 5,000-year history and civilization. Billions of people around the world watched the four-hour show choreographed by China's internationally-acclaimed film director Zhang Yimou, whose works include "House of Fly Daggers" and "Hero".
But the Chinese festive mood were dampened as Du Li, a pre-Olympics favorite, failed to defend her title.
Du fled the shooting hall in tears, without saying a word. She told reporters later that she "was not fully prepared for the pressure of shooting in the final."
Emmons offered sympathy for Du. "I feel really bad for Du Li. She can shoot better than she did today. Here, the Chinese media is maybe putting a lot of pressure on her," she said.
Pang, who is making his first Olympics appearance, led from the start to finish in the men's air pistol, a traditional strength event of China. The 22-year-old established a big lead in the qualification round and was never threatened in the final.
"I'm deliberately not informed (of the results of women's 10m air rifle) to keep me from extra pressure," said Pang. "I hope my success can bring good luck to the Chinese shooting team."
The silver went to South Korea's Jin Jong-oh, and Kim Jong-su of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea had bronze.
Mariel Zagunis led a U.S. clean sweep in the women's sabre fencing comeptition, while Spanish cyclist Samuel Sanchez braved humid and hot weather to win the men's road race along a route from the Forbidden City to the Great Wall.
Romania and South Korea split the two golds contested in the first day's judo competition, with Alina Dumitru of Romania winning the women's 48-kilogram class and Choi Min-ho of South Korea prevailing in the men's 60-kg.
U.S. swimming phenom Michael Phelps issued a warning to his rivals as he clocked four minutes 07.82 seconds to break his own Olympic record in the men's 400m individual medley. The 23-year-old is seeking to surpass Mark Spitz' 1972 record of seven golds in one games.
"I am pretty surprised," Phelps said. "I didn't expect the heats could be so fast."
The final is on Sunday morning.
Chinese women's volleyball team opened their title defense with a stylish 3-0 victory over minnows Venezuela, but Athens Games silver medalists Russia lost 3-1 to Italy.
In soccer, China moved a step closer to the quarterfinals after drawing 1-1 with Canada. The Chinese women's team, known as "Steel Roses", next face Argentina and a tie will allow them to advance.
Defending champion United States rebounded from a stunning 2-0 defeat by Norway to nip Japan 1-0, and World Cup champion Germany downed Nigeria by the same score.
Fourteen golds are up for grabs on Sunday.
(Xinhua News Agency August 9, 2008)