Gold medal winner Elena Dementieva (C) of Russia, Dinara Safina (L) and Bronze medalist Vera Zvonareva also from Russia display their medals after competing in the women's singles tennis competition at the Olympic Green Tennis Centre in Beijing today.I didn't expect Elena Dementieva to win against Dinara Safina in a head-to-head all-Russian final at the Olympic women's singles today. And even the bronze medal won by Vera Zvonareva belongs to Russian!
Dementieva wins 3-6, 7-5, 6-3, making up for her disappointment in losing the 2000 Sydney Olympic final to Venus Williams.She clenched her fists in celebration and then wiped away tears of joy after denying the in-form Safina for the first time in four attempts this year.
I would say that Safina has temper that is very much like her brother. After double-faults she flung her racket, banged it against the concrete and smacked a ball into the stands, but the tantrums failed to help.
When Dementieva closed out her victory with a forehand winner, she collapsed to her knees, then walked to net and received a congratulatory hug from Safina. Dementieva snapped Safina’s 15-match winning streak.
“I never expected a medal—gold, silver or bronze,” said Dementieva, 26. “It’s unbelievable. For me this is the best moment in my career. I’ll never forget it.”
(Images by BEHROUZ MEHRI/PHILIPPE HUGUEN/AFP/Getty Images)
