They don’t call him the “Flying Gymnast” for nothing.
When Epke Zonderland went to perform in the men’s high bar final he proved why that particular nickname was chosen for him.
He does something most other gymnasts do not do. He does three major releases in a row, without any moves in between to allow him to catch his breath.
Zonderland is one of the world’s best on high bar and has proven it at world championships, etc. But the one thing his trophy case was missing – an Olympic medal. Now his collection is complete. And it wasn’t just any medal he won at the Olympics, it was gold. The highest honor that any athlete can achieve.
His impressive 16.533 score (so hight that this score isn’t typically seen outside of the vault) brought him a gold medal. There was no way any other gymnast could compete with that or even attempt to top it.
Zonderland’s gold medal was the first gold medal ever for a Dutch male gymnast. It was the Netherlands’ first gold medal in gymnastics since the women won team gold in 1928. It was also the Netherlands’ second Olympic medal overall in London.