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A week after the start of the Athens Olympic Games, China and the United States are locked into a duel for top medal honors with the Chinese paddlers clinching another gold yesterday.

Entering the seventh day of competition tied with 14 golds each, Wang Nan and Zhang Yining of China won the women's table tennis doubles final to put China momentarily ahead.

Within the hour, Matthew Emmons won the 50-meter rifle prone competition to pull the United States even.

Besides the solitary gold, China picked up two silver and four bronze medals yesterday and are tied with the Americans with 15 golds, 11 silvers and 10 bronzes, respectively.

Wang brushed aside her shock exit from the women's singles on Thursday to team up with compatriot Zhang. The two successfully defended their doubles crown yesterday.

"I have regrets of course, but I needed to put it out of my mind for this doubles game and it paid off," Wang said yesterday of her quarterfinals loss. "I could not let my emotions affect the team. There were no shadows of my loss today."

Wang and Zhang were forced to beat compatriots Guo Yue and Niu Jianfeng in the semifinals. Guo and Niu ended up with the bronze medal.

The Chinese men, Chen Qi and Ma Lin, have also set themselves up for a gold medal. They will face the Chinese Hong Kong duo of Ko Lai Chak and Li Ching today.

Editor: Catherine