Zou defends Olympic gold medal in men's boxing

 LONDON, Aug. 11 (Xinhua) -- Defending Olympic champion Zou Shiming of China outscored Kaeo Pongprayoon from Thailand 13-10 to defend his Olympic gold at London Olympics here on Saturday.

Zou, who edged the Irish fighter Paddy Barnes in Friday's semifinal, managed to lead in each of the three rounds. The 31-year-old veteran¹ took the advantage in the first round 2-1, in which both fighters seemed reluctant² to attack first.

The second round was much hotter than the first one, as Zou defended his side better than his opponent³, ending the second quarter 4-3.

Pongprayoon made effort in the third round to pull the score back, but Zou was more efficient to conclude the round with 7-6, pocketing his third medal and second gold at his three Olympic Games.

"Every match was difficult, both for me and my opponents," said Zou.

"Second gold medal is great for me. I'm enjoying it."

Zou was known as the number one fighter in China, especially after he claimed the bronze medal at the 2004 Olympics. He pocketed three titles from 2005 to 2011 at the World Championships, which put a lot of pressure on his shoulder.

It was possibly the final Olympic show for the father of a one-year-old son. He was to spend more time with his wife and son after going back home.

"I've promised them I would bring back home another Olympics gold, and today I fulfilled⁴ my goal," said Zou.

Zou wasn't on his top form before the final. He failed to harvest overwhelming⁵ victory in every of his three previous matches, and his breathtaking semifinal raised the worries of the Chinese boxing fans.

"There was too much pressure. Luckily I won the match after all. All I want to do now is to have a very very good rest, " said Zou .

1 veteran   

n.老兵；经验丰富的人，老手

参考例句：

• My grandfather is a veteran of the Second World War.我祖父是二战时的老兵。
• We often asked the veteran workers for advice.我们常常向老工人求教。

2 reluctant   

adj.不愿意的；迟迟不合作的；不同意的

参考例句：

• The workers are reluctant to be ordered around by the employers.工人们不愿被雇主们差来遣去地随便使唤。
• I am reluctant about asking him to do this.我极不愿意让他去干此事。

3 opponent   

n.对手，敌手，反对者；adj.敌对的，反对的

参考例句：

• The boxer gave his opponent a punch on the nose.这个拳击手朝他对手的鼻子上猛击一拳。
• After a fierce struggle,he got a beat on his opponent.经过殊死的较量，他占了对手的上风。

4 fulfilled   

adj.满足的，个人志向得以实现的v.满足( fulfil的过去式和过去分词 )；执行；尽到；应验

参考例句：

• He doesn't feel fulfilled in his present job. 目前的工作未能让他感到满足。
• I withheld payment until they had fulfilled the contract. 他们履行合同后，我才付款。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 overwhelming   

adj.势不可挡的，压倒的，无法抵抗的

参考例句：

• The flood was overwhelming and the city was soon drowned.洪水来势凶猛，很快这个城市就被淹没了。
• The act was adopted by an overwhelming majority.该法案以压倒多数通过。