Liu Yang, of China, performs on the rings during the artistic gymnastics men's apparatus final at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Monday, Aug. 2, 2021, in Tokyo, Japan. (PHOTO / AP)

TOKYO - China's Liu Yang and You Hao claimed the gold and silver medals in the men's rings respectively at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games on Monday.

Liu scored 15.500 points to finish the top, ahead of You in 15.300 points. Greece's defending champion Eleftherios Petrounias took bronze in 15.200 points.

Liu, 26, placed second to qualify for the final. With an unparalleled execution score of 9.000 points for his movements, Liu secured the first gymnastics gold for China at these Games.

Liu Yang scored 15.500 points to finish the top, ahead of You in 15.300 points. Greece's defending champion Eleftherios Petrounias took bronze in 15.200 points

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"My goal was to become an Olympic champion since I was a child. I have trained for 20 years, and I was very eager to become a champion. There were times when I wanted to give up, and times when I didn't want to practice, and then there were injuries or other factors. But in the end I still stick to it, and then had this satisfactory result," Liu said.

29-year-old You placed eighth to qualify for the final and finished by a gap of 0.200 points to Liu.

Silver medallist China's You Hao, left, and compatriot gold medallist Liu Yang celebrate during the medal ceremony for the rings during the artistic gymnastics men's apparatus final at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Aug 2, 2021, in Tokyo, Japan. (PHOTO / AP)

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"I'm very satisfied, although it's silver, but I'm very satisfied," You said. "Pressure is from ourselves, because we all want to win glory for our country, and for the first few games there were gold, so we still have a lot of pressure. Basically, I put pressure on myself."

30-year-old Petrounias took the third by a gap of 0.100 to You. "Trust me, it was not easy. I've been working a lot in Greece and here, and also just before I went up on rings (in qualifications) on my mental training. This helped a lot. Also, I have done so much training," he said.