'The dream of all my life' - Algeria's Kaylia Nemour wins gold at Paris 2024

Teenage gymnast delivers stunning performance to top podium in uneven bars

Algeria's Kaylia Nemour celebrates after winning the artistic gymnastics women's uneven bars final during the Paris 2024 Olympic Games at the Bercy Arena in Paris, on August 4, 2024. AFP

Algeria's Kaylia Nemour celebrates winning gold. AFP

Algeria's Kaylia Nemour competes in the artistic gymnastics. AFP

Algeria's Kaylia Nemour reacts after competing in the artistic gymnastics women's uneven bars final. AFP

Algeria's Kaylia Nemour reacts after competing in the artistic gymnastics women's uneven bars final. AFP

Algeria's Kaylia Nemour cries tears of joy. AFP

Algeria's Kaylia Nemour celebrates with her coach France's Marc Chirilcenco. AFP

Kaylia Nemour of Algeria performs during the Women's Uneven Bars Final. EPA

Algeria's Kaylia Nemour and her coach Marc Chirilcenco. AFP

Kaylia Nemour of Algeria performs her routine. EPA

Algeria's Kaylia Nemour celebrates. AFP

Kaylia Nemour of Algeria performs. EPA

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Teenager Kaylia Nemour produced "the performance of her life" to become the first Algerian and African to win an Olympic gymnastics medal with gold on the uneven bars on Sunday.

The 17-year-old took the title ahead of China's Qiu Qiyuan, with American Sunisa Lee snatching bronze with the final performance of the session. Defending champion Nina Derwael of Belgium finished fourth.

"I'm so shocked, it's the dream of all my life. I can't believe it has happened, I'm speechless," said Nemour.

Nemour's breathtaking high-flying acrobatic performance earned 15.700 points to push world champion Qiu, 17, into the silver medal position with 15.500. The Chinese athlete had set her mark just before Nemour meaning the pressure was heaped on the Algerian as she stepped up to perform.

Nemour was born in France and still trains there but switched to compete for Algeria after a dispute with the French gymnastics federation and Nemour's club of Avoine Beaumont, which led to the gymnast embracing her father's Algerian nationality.

She delighted in parading the flag of Algeria as she celebrated her gold medal at the Bercy Arena.

The 17-year-old is a rare talent on the bars, swooping from one to the other performing a series of high-risk high-reward feats that are both athletically and technically demanding.

"In qualifying I had 15.600, when I saw [Qiu's] 15.500 I said, I really had to fight and gave the performance of my life," said the Algerian.

"It's crazy, I'm honoured to have this medal after all that has happened, it's a relief."

US gymnastics great Simone Biles failed to qualify for the uneven bars final. But competing last, teammate Lee snatched bronze ahead of Derwael, a former two-time world champion who was returning after surgery.

Meanwhile, the UAE's Safiya Al Sayegh made history as the first Emirati female cyclist to take part in the Olympics as she competed in the women's road race on Sunday.

Al Sayegh was unable to finish the race, however, with the 31-year-old American Kristen Faulkner going on to claim gold.

In athletics, Morocco's Noura Ennadi is safely through to the semi-finals of the 400m hurdles after placing second in Heat 5 with a time of 55.26secs.

Ennadi was quickly passed by heat winner - and the event's greatest ever athlete - Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone and found herself in the chasing pack coming into the final straight. But the 25-year-old ran a rapid final 50m to take runner-up behind the American.

Bahrain's Winfred Yavi lived up to her billing as a favourite for the 3000m steeplechase gold after winning the second heat with a time of 9:15.11.

Yavi, who won gold at last year's World Championships in Budapest, is the leading contender for gold in Paris and began her campaign in comfortable style.

The 24-year-old Kenya-born athlete transferred her allegiance to Bahrain at the age of 15 and has represented the Gulf nation since 2016.

In Heat 1, Tunisia's Marwa Bouzayani set a new personal best of 9:10.91 but narrowly missed out on a place in the final by placing sixth. Only the top five in each heat advance.

The final will take place on Tuesday at 11.14pm UAE time.

In boxing, Cindy Ngamba guaranteed the Refugee Olympic Team their first-ever medal after comfortably winning her quarter-final on Sunday.

Ngamba, who was born in Cameroon but sought safe haven in Britain aged 11, beat France's Davina Michel with a unanimous points decision to reach the last four of the women's 75kg category and win at least bronze.

Morocco's Khadija Mardi fell agonisingly short of securing a boxing medal after she was defeated in her 75kg quarter-final by Australia's Caitlin Parker.

Parker won the fight on a 4-1 split decision, winning every round according to four of the five judges.

It was a fine effort from Mardi, who is naturally a heavyweight and holds the amateur world title in that division.

Egypt's men's handball team had already qualified for the quarter-finals but they put a shine on their group stage campaign with a 34-27 victory over Argentina.

In the pool, Tunisia's Ahmed Jaouadi finished sixth in the 1500m freestyle final as American Bobby Finke set a world record.

Finke was under world-record pace the entire race and really turned it on coming to the finish. He touched in 14:30.67 seconds to break the record of 14:31.02 set by China's Sun Yang at the 2012 London Games.