AARHUS, (Denmark) Oct 21: Cheng Fei twisted and flipped her way to gold on the floor on Saturday, her third and China's eighth gold medal at the world gymnastics championships.

Cheng, who also won the vault and team titles, scored 15.875 for the victory.

All-round silver medallist Jana Bieger finished second on 15.550 points, ensuring that the American team will go home without a gold medal at the world championships for the first time since 1999.

All-round champion Vanessa Ferrari of Italy came third with 15.450 points.

“I wanted the floor gold in 2004 but something went wrong and I didn't get it,” said Cheng, who finished fourth at the Olympic Games in Athens. “So I'm delighted to finally get it right this time.”

Her coach, Shan Zhen Lu, was understandably pleased.

“Chang Fei's floor routine is the best routine in the world,” he said. “It's even better than her vault. Last year, after she won the gold on vault (at the world championships in Melbourne) it gave her the boost to do well here.”

The American team will rue their missed chances and injury woes as they return home without a world title. Chellsie Memmel, who had the third score in qualifiers, pulled out of the final because of a shoulder injury and was replaced by Natasha Kelley, who finished seventh.

Last year's floor champion, Alicia Sacramone, did not qualify, while silver medal winner Nastia Liukin could not compete due to an ankle injury.

“We did the best we could and we're going home with a lot of silver medals,” Bieger told Reuters.

“We've just got to clean up our routines a little bit and execute them better,” she added. “The difference between us and the Chinese was they nailed their landings and performed all the elements cleanly.”

All-round bronze medallist and beam silver medal winner Sandra Izbasa of Romania stepped out of the marked area twice, earning a 0.2-point deduction that cost her a medal.—AFP