(Beijing, September 16) In the gold-medal match of the "Good Luck Beijing" 2007 Goalball Invitational Tournament held at the Beijing Institute of Technology Gymnasium on September 16, host China beat a powerful Swedish team by a wide margin of 8-3 to claim the title. Sweden had to be content with the silver medal.

As an experienced contingent known for its great strength and tight defense, Sweden came into the final with six straight wins. China, for its part, has achieved rapid progress in the sport in recent two years and its outstanding performance at the current event attracted thousands and thousands of local spectators, who made special trips to the venue to cheer the players on over the past few days.

China fielded the same lineup as in the previous days. To the surprise of many, Yao Yongquan showed up on the court despite an injured middle finger. Sweden also fielded its best players for the decisive game. Sweden opened the score in less than three minutes, and China equalled the score with a long, corner throw. In the eighth minute or so, Sweden scored again on a penalty throw, but China played fast to tie the score at 2-2 45 seconds before the end of the first half.

Three minutes into the second half, Sweden rolled the ball over a Chinese player into the Chinese goal, 3-2. China soon launched an attack with a bouncing ball to level the score. In the fifth minute, China broke the Swedish defense with a straight throw to lead 4-3. In the seventh minute, China's Chen Liangliang delivered another straight ball, followed by a successful penalty throw, 6-3. In the remaining one and a half minutes China found the Swedish goal twice in a row to secure its final victory and the first gold medal for China in goalball history.