Former Olympic champion Zhong Man had a happy ending in his last match by leading Jiangsu to retain the men's team sabre title at the 12th Chinese National Games here on Thursday.
In the final, Jiangsu fought back a late surge with Zhong man and Chen Taotao's effort to defeat host Liaoning 45-39. Guangdong overwhelmed Hubei 45-27 in the match for bronze.
Zhong, who suffered a shock defeat in the quarterfinals of the men's individual competition four days ago, dedicated today's victory to his daughter.
"I promised to my daughter that I will win this match, I don't want to disappoint her," sai Zhong, who became the first Chinese Olympic fencing champion in Beijing 2008.
The 32-year-old Chinese fencing icon defeated Frenchman Nicolas Lopez 15-9 in the Olympic men's sabre individual final to grab the gold which broke a 24-year-long drought for China.
Before coming to Liaoning, Zhong had already decided to retire after the Chinese National Games, so he didn't want to leave any regrets at the end of his career.
"A gold medal is the best gift for my retirement and I have to say 'thanks' to my family, my friends and my teammates who fought with me tonight," Zhong said.
