Nabarrete Zanetti Wins Brazil’s First-Ever Gymnastics Medal at the London Games

London Olympics 2012

Call him the new “lord of the rings.” Arthur Nabarrete Zanetti has taken down the defending champion at the 2012 Olympic Games, earning his place in the annals of Brazil’s sports history…

The 22-year-old Brazilian gymnast edged out a victory over China’s Chen Yibing to claim the gold medal on Monday in the men’s rings final at the London Games.

Arthur Nabarrete Zanetti

Nabarrete Zanetti and the rest of this finalists faced the difficult task of trying to unseat Chen, the 2008 Olympic Games champion in this event, after he kicked off the competition with a score of 15.800.

No one could top the four-time world champ’s impressive score until Nabarrete Zanetti’s 15.900 at the end of the competition.

Arthur Nabarrete Zanetti

Nabarrete Zanetti had qualified fourth for the men’s rings final with the highest execution score, but he had the lowest marks in difficulty among the eight gymnasts.

But, he matched Chen’s difficulty score on Monday at 6.800 and was one of three gymnasts to score at least a nine in execution.

“I’m very happy, I was the last gymnast to compete and I stayed calm and took my moment,” said Nabarrete Zanetti.

Nabarrete Zanetti, who came in second to Chen at the 2011 World Championships, claimed Brazil’s first-ever Olympic gymnastics medal.

Arthur Nabarrete Zanetti

“This medal isn’t just for me but for all the athletes and all the gymnasts in Brazil,” Nabarrete Zanetti told reporters after he struggled to hold back the tears during the victory ceremony.

Nabarrete Zanetti’s performance knocked Italian Matteo Morandi into the bronze position with a score of 15.733.