Balance Beam, Women

The format was the same as it had been from 1984-2004, with eight gymnasts advancing from the team all-around, but no more than two per nation. The top 11 places in qualifying went to gymnasts from China, Russia, and the United States, but the two per nation rule allowed the 12th and 13th finishers, Romanian Gabriela Drăgoi and Japan’s Koko Tsurumi, respectively, to advance to the final. The leading qualifier had been China’s Li Shanshan, who placed sixth in the final. The favorite was American Nastia Liukin, the 2005 and 2007 World Champion, who had already won the individual all-around in Beijing. Liukin performed well in the final, scoring 16.025 but her teammate, Shawn Johnson, 2007 World all-around champion, defeated her with 16.225 to win gold. Drăgoi and Tsurumi placed fifth and eighth in the final.