Olympics: S.Korean Shin A Lam's appeal had no chance, officials say
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South Korea's Shin A Lam sits on the field at the end of her Women's Epee semifinal bout against Germany's Britta Heidemann as part of the fencing event of London 2012 Olympic games, on July 30, 2012 at the ExCel centre in London. -- PHOTO: AFP
LONDON (AP) - Olympic fencing officials say they had no choice but to reject an appeal by South Korea following the defeat of Shin A Lam in the semifinals of the Olympic women's individual epee.
The South Koreans claimed that Shin's match against Britta Heidemann was already over when the German was awarded the decisive point in the final second on Monday, earning her a 6-5 victory.
Fencing officials said in a statement on Tuesday that the referee confirmed the last hit, and that they can't "change a question of fact." The appeal delayed competition for more than an hour.
Shin waited on the strip, crying before a crowd of 8,000, before it was announced. Shin later lost her bronze-medal match.
