WVU Student Wins First Gold Medal Of The Rio Olympics
RIO DE JANEIRO (AP/KDKA) -- A West Virginia University student won the first gold medal of the Rio Olympics on Saturday.
FIRST Olympic Gold medal of #Rio2016 is won by WVU! Ginny - you've made all of Mountaineer Nation proud! #HailWV pic.twitter.com/AqlR0G11bv
— WVU Rifle (@WVURifle) August 6, 2016
Ginny Thrasher, a sophomore at WVU, won the gold medal for the women's 10-meter air rifle event Saturday morning.
Such an amazing moment for our sophomore sensation, Ginny Thrasher!! #HailWV #Rio16 pic.twitter.com/WZPouSfdnH
— WVU Rifle (@WVURifle) August 6, 2016
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Thrasher shot 10.5 on her first shot of the final elimination round and smiled after 10.4 on her second shot put her comfortably ahead of China's Li Du. Thrasher had a cumulative score of 208.0 to beat Du, a two-time gold medalist, by a point. China's Siling Yu earned the bronze.
Thrasher became the first freshman to win both individual NCAA rifle titles and helped West Virginia win the team title. She followed that by winning the U.S. Olympic Trials less than a month later, earning a trip to Rio.
American Sarah Scherer made the finals in her return to the Olympics after two back surgeries, but was eliminated in the first round. She finished eighth.
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