Dylan Schmidt has won New Zealand's first Olympic medal in trampoline gymnastics, his bronze tonight in Tokyo coming after a dramatic final in which several athletes struggled to finish their routines.
The 24-year-old qualified third for the final behind Belarusian Uladzilsau Hancharou, the reigning Olympic champion, and his countryman 20-year-old Ivan Litvinovich, and Schmidt was in the silver medal position until Litvinovich overtook leader Dong Dong from China and Schmidt for the gold medal.
Dong, 32, the gold medallist in London in 2012 and a veteran competing in his fourth and final Olympics, had looked a shoo-in for gold until Litvinovich, who qualified first and therefore jumped last, snatched it from him with a score of 61.715. Dong recorded 61.235 and Schmidt 60.675.
"It's surreal," Schmidt told Sky Sport afterwards. "I worked so hard to be here. It just feels right, I can't explain it. To finally be here and it to be real and tangible and holding this medal, I'm speechless.