11 August 2008 - Korean men set Olympic record en route to fourth team gold

Korean men set Olympic record en route to fourth team gold  Beijing - 11 August 2008   The Korean men beat Italy and set a 24-arrow Olympic record of 227 en route to their fourth Olympic team gold medal. The men's semi-finals and medal matches provided an incredible afternoon filled with nail-biting matches that came down to the very last arrow at the Olympic Green Archery Field.   In the gold medal match, Korea and Italy were tied going into the last three arrows when Mauro NESPOLI (ITA) shot a seven, handing the gold medal to Korea (227-225). For Ilario DI BUO (ITA), the loss was a flashback to the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games when Korea defeated Italy in the gold medal match. DI BUO is the only remaining archer from either team.   In the bronze medal match, Ukraine was unable to defend the team bronze medal they won in 2004. Ukraine climbed back from a six point deficit at the halfway point, only to lose to the crowd favourite, China, on the last arrow, 222-219.   Korea beat China in an energy-filled semi-final. Halfway through the match, China was tied with Korea, but the pressure eventually caught up with China and they were unable to deny the Korean's a fourth shot at team Olympic gold, losing the match (221-218).   In the other semi-finals, Italy assured itself a men's team medal by beating Ukraine, 223-221. To advance to the gold medal final, Italy needed to shoot a nine on the last arrow and it was NESPOLI, the newcomer to the Italian team, who calmly nailed a 10 to the delight of the crowd.   En route to the semi-finals, Korea had a bye in the 1/8 elimination round and beat Poland in the quarterfinal. Italy beat Canada in the 1/8 elimination round and Malaysia in the next round.   China beat Russia in the quarterfinal round and Great Britain in the 1/8 elimination round. Ukraine had a bye in the 1/8 elimination round and then beat Chinese Taipei in the next round. USA lost to Chinese Taipei in the 1/8 elimination round.   ONS jf/jg/bc/adg