TOKYO — Liu Yang of China edged teammate You Hao to capture gold in men’s still rings.

The 26-year-old put together a spectacular routine to post a score of 15.500, just ahead of You’s 15.300. Liu’s 9.0 execution score from the judges was the highest of the eight men in a tight event final.

The win was an upset of sorts for Liu, who finished fourth in Rio de Janeiro five years ago. He captured gold in the event at the 2014 world championships but had never finished higher than third at any major competition until Monday.

Defending Olympic champion Elftherios Petrounias of Greece took bronze. The 30-year-old Petrounias, a five-time world champion, didn’t even secure a spot in Tokyo until winning a World Cup event in June.

Samir Ait Said of France, who broke his left leg while competing on the vault at the 2016 Olympics, finished fourth.