Light heavyweight Ward wins USA's lone boxing gold

On a day when Cuba won three more golds and British teenage sensation Amir Khan came up short in his gold medal bout, Ward found his mark with quick inside punches in the third round to pull ahead.

Ward trailed after two rounds, but came on strong in the final two despite a swelling around his right eye that coaches worked on in the corner between rounds. He won the third round 7-2, then remained aggressive with quick flurries in the final round to seal the win.

"I felt he was much quicker than me," Aripgadjiev said.

Ward had a cheering section of family members rooting him on, an atmosphere much different than Friday's semifinal bout, where he was booed by the crowd from the moment he entered the arena.

He admitted that the pressure of the moment slowed him down in the first two rounds.

"I wasn't having fun the first two rounds. I was kind of tight because I've got the country and world on my shoulders," Ward said. "But I loosened up and picked it up.'

In previous Olympics, the 20-year-old father of two from Oakland, Calif., would have been an attractive candidate for a promoter to sign for big money. Because Olympic boxing wasn't widely shown on American television, though, Ward's market value won't be as high.

Still, he said he plans to pursue a pro career.

"I have to go home, settle down and see what's on the table," he said.

Cuba ended the boxing tournament with five gold medals, two more than Russia. Defending Olympic champion Guillermo Rigondeaux and Mario Kindelan both won, and so did light flyweight Yari Bhartelemy.

The Cuban total didn't match the seven golds won in the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, but was better than the four Cuba took home in each of the last two games.

In perhaps the most anticipated final, Kindelan beat Khan for the lightweight gold.

Kindelan was too wily and experienced for the 17-year-old Khan, who had won four straight fights in impressive fashion. The Cuban piled up points counterpunching, then got out of the way when Khan tried to press the fight.

Late in the fourth round, Khan had the crowd roaring when he landed a series of right hands, but it was never enough. He ended up dropping a 30-22 decision to the 33-year-old Cuban, who said he would retire after the games.

"You stick around and you'll be the next gold medalist and next world champion," Kindelan told Khan after the fight.

Russian super heavyweight Alexander Povetkin, meanwhile, won a gold without having to throw a punch. Povetkin's opponent in the finals, Mohamed Aly of Egypt, failed the morning medical exam.