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Teenager diver Wang Xin celebrates birthday with Olympic gold
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Surprisingly calm and steady, the teenagers led all the way in the final. Their winning mark was 363.54 points, almost 30 points more than the silver medalist Australian Melissa Wu and Briony Cole, who posted 335.16. Tatiana Ortiz and Paola Espinosa of Mexico took the bronze in 330.06.

"I am happy with the result," said the 16-year-old. "The gold is very important to me."

Though already an Olympic and world champion, the 16-year-old is still a child in some aspects.

The talented girl has a "lucky pillow" sewed by her mom, which she always carried with her, also into the Olympic Village. Now the "lucky pillow" really brought her good luck, and it is hoped that it could bring more, as Wang will also take part in the individual platform competition.

"Now I will focus on the individual competition," said Wang, where she needs to compete with lots of strong rivals, including her teammate and partner Chen. But she said, "I will not consider her as a competitor. We will encourage each other at that time."

Wang is a native of Hubei Province, central China. She was trained to be a gymnast before the age of 10, but she transformed to be a diver at 12.

Her original name is Wang Ruoxue but was changed to the current one upon suggestions of her coach Yu Fen, who thought the original one sounded too weak and delicate.

"I used to be afraid of water when I was young," Wang said. "And I still had the fear when I just started the diving practice. But I overcame the fear in five days."

The 2006 Asian Games were the first international competition Wang Xin participated in, and she collected two golds there, both the individual and synchronized 10m platform. One year later, in the 2007 Melbourne Worlds, the talent diver claimed two golds again, and let the whole world get familiar with her sweet smiles.

Now in Beijing, Wang has become an Olympic champion. China has topped every podium since the women's 10m platform synchro was introduced at the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games, and Wang and her partner have carried on the glory.

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