Gymnastics - Russia's Kanaeva wins rhythmic gold

Gold medallist Evgeniya Kanaeva of Russia poses during the medal ceremony for the individual all-around of the rhythmic gymnastics competition at the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games August 23, 2008.

BEIJING (Reuters) - Russia's Evgeniya Kanaeva easily outclassed her rivals with routines oozing grace and charm to win the Olympic rhythmic gymnastics all-around gold on Saturday.

Picking up the top scores on all four apparatus -- hoop, ribbon, rope and clubs -- the European champion notched a total of 75.500 points, a comfortable 3.575 more than Inna Zhukova of Belarus.

Ukraine's world champion Anna Bessonova took bronze, matching her 2004 Athens achievement. She edged out Russia's 2005 world champion Olga Kapranova, whose botched clubs routine cost her dearly.

"I was extremely happy, I was very glad for myself for my coach and all the crowd," a smiling Kanaeva told a news conference. "I'm just someone who loves the performance, I love performing in front of the crowd."

Bessonova had faced anxious times after her club routine, looking distraught at her score before judges increased her total by 0.050 points after a 10-minute deliberation.

"It was a pity but then I realised I had been given another chance and I gave the best I could," Bessonova said.

The score revision drew her level on points with Kapranova with one apparatus to perform.

The Russian held third place because of a tiebreak rule despite dropping her club and losing balance during her third routine.

Bessonova's flawless ribbon routine scored higher than Kapranova's and the Russian was left disappointed and hurried out of the arena without speaking to reporters.

Kanaeva was the third successive Russian to win the title after Alina Kabaeva in 2004 and Yulia Barsukova in 2000 in a discipline traditionally dominated by former Soviet states.

Russia, whose female artistic gymnasts drew a blank for the first time at an Olympics, have the chance of another medal on Sunday when they are favourites for the group title.

(Additional reporting by Martin Petty)

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