vault again, but Khorkina refused, knowing that it would not put her in medal contention. In the event finals, Khorkina gave up her spot in the vault final to teammate, Elena Zamolodchikova, who went on to win the gold medal. Khorkina said, "I thought she could win the gold. I'm glad I could give her that opportunity." She then won the uneven bars final with a score of 9.862. She became the second gymnast to win the event in two consecutive Olympic games after Polina Astakhova who won in 1960 and 1964. Commenting on the all-around final, Khorkina said, "If I didn't get over the disappointment, I wouldn't be Khorkina. I wouldn't be standing here with the gold medal. It still hurts a lot. It was cruel to all the participants, to vault on a nonstandard height. It's quite possible to get killed. The five centimeters could decide the future of a sportsperson. But I was fortunate to have many people to help me get through it. Tomorrow, I will dance for Russia. I will leave what happened on the vault far behind me, like the North Pole." She then won the silver medal in the floor final with a score of 9.812, upstaged again by Zamolodchikova who scored a 9.850. 2001–2004 In October 2001, Khorkina competed at the World Championships in Ghent, Belgium. She helped the Russian team win the silver medal and individually she won the all around final with a score of 37.617. In event finals, she placed first on vault scoring 9.412, first on uneven bars scoring 9.437, and third on floor scoring 9.375. In April 2002, Khorkina competed at the European Championships in Patras, Greece. She helped Russia win the first place in the team competition and individually she won the all around competition with a score of 37.592. In event finals, she placed first on uneven bars scoring 9.550, second on balance beam scoring 9.262, and fifth on floor scoring 9.075. In November 2002, Khorkina competed at the World Championships in Debrecen, Hungary. She placed seventh on uneven bars scoring 7.387 and fourth on balance beam scoring 9.462. In March 2003, Khorkina competed at the World Cup event in Thessaloniki, Greece. She placed first on uneven bars scoring 9.425. In August 2003, Khorkina competed at the World Championships in Anaheim, United States. She won the all around final for with a score of 38.124