Zion's Moreno Loses Weight, Match for the Gold Medal

BARCELONA, Spain Weight-watchers, take note. A crash diet mayhave cost Juan Moreno of the United States a gold medal in Olympictaekwondo Wednesday.

The native of Zion lost 18 pounds over six days to make thefinweight limit of 112, but wound up with the silver in thedemonstration sport.

"It is not an excuse, but it really affected me," he said. "Mylegs couldn't move and the speed just wasn't there. I had to rely onone kick too much, and you can't win an Olympic gold medal doingthat."

World champion Gergely Salim of Denmark beat Moreno 3-1 in thefinal match.

It was the second silver medal in two Olympics for Moreno, who won his first in Seoul at age 17.

The 5-10 Moreno had to lose 45 pounds to make the finweightlimit. He got rid of the last 18 pounds in the final week before thecompetition and blamed his loss to Salim on the crash diet.

Moreno said he decided to lose the weight because of hisexperience in the finweight division.

"That's where I've been for so long and I was comfortablethere," he said.

Moreno, who will attend the University of Hawaii this fall, saidhe probably will retire from the sport.