Russian Moiseev Wins Gold

`It was definitely easier to win in Athens than it was here,` said Moiseev.

Russia's won the gold medal in the men's modern pentathlon on Thursday to become only the second man to successfully defend his Olympic title in the event.

Moiseev produced a steady performance in all five events to match the achievement of Lars Hall of Sweden (1952-56) in the day-long test of strength and stamina.

He was far enough in front in the final 3,000 metres run that he had time to stop and collect a Russian flag from the crowd before the finish line and draped it around his shoulders as he had done four years ago in Athens.

"It was definitely easier to win in Athens than it was here," said Moiseev, who appeared exhausted at a news conference after the 12 hours of competition on a soaking day.

"I had to prove to everyone and to myself that I could do it again. And I did."

Two fast-running Lithuania lawyers got the silver and bronze medals. Edvinas Krungolcas moved up from third thanks to his strong performance in a 3,000-metre run held in pouring rain.

Andrejus Zadneprovskis, silver medallist in 2004, took third after rising from sixth in the run.

China's Qian Zhenhua had the silver medal in his sights at the start of the run, much to the delight of the big home crowd.

But he was passed by the two Lithuanians on the run and finished fourth, collapsing at finish line. He was soon back on his feet, however.

Modern pentathlon was designed to simulate what a soldier delivering a message under duress would go through. Pierre de Coubertin, the father of the modern Games, created it as a test of strength, technical ability, concentration and endurance.

Despite the rain that made show jumping treacherous, Moiseev managed to stay on his horse and get a solid 15th place in the show jumping. Moiseev was at or near the top of the 36-man field all day long.

He was fifth in shooting, shared first with Qian in fencing and was sixth in the 200m freestyle swimming to move into first overall before surviving the show jumping, where many rivals were knocked down the table.

"The riding was very difficult in terms of both physical effort and psychological," said Moiseev, 29. "I braced myself for a difficult ride and I got through it. That was the key event."

John Zakrzewski of France was lucky to escape serious injury when he flipped off his horse on one jump. The big crowd gasped when the chestnut gelding named Diandian then trampled him but he was able to remount before retiring.

The idea behind the sport is that a soldier is sent to deliver a message. He faces an enemy with a gun and shoots, then duels against others with a sword, swims across a river, rides an unfamiliar horse and then runs cross-country to his destination.