TAIPEI (TVBS News) — Taiwanese Olympic gymnast Tang Chia-Hung (唐嘉鴻) faced disappointment Sunday (April 13) at the Osijek World Cup in Croatia, finishing sixth in the horizontal bar final with a score of 13.266. The bronze medalist from the Paris Olympics struggled to maintain his earlier qualifying form in the competition.
Tang had shown tremendous promise in the qualifying rounds, posting an impressive 14.933 score to lead the field. Despite raising his routine's difficulty value from 5.9 to 6.3 for the final, he only achieved a 6.1 difficulty score paired with a 7.166 execution score. His performance was marred by a fall during the cat leap 540 element, leading to his sixth-place finish.
In comments to Taiwan's Central News Agency (CNA, 中央社), Tang expressed frustration over the disconnect between his promising practice sessions and his actual competition performance. He maintained optimism about regaining his competitive form through technical refinements. The gymnast immediately analyzed his performance footage after the event, identifying specific flaws that require adjustment before his next competition.
The 25-year-old athlete will travel directly to Qatar on Monday to prepare for next week's World Cup event, seeking redemption and improved results. This Osijek competition marked Tang's return to the international stage after an eight-month break following his bronze medal performance on the horizontal bar at the Paris Olympics, a significant achievement for Taiwan's gymnastics program. ★