Power-packed Germany won the Olympic men's hockey gold medal after 16 years with a hard-fought 1-0 win over Spain in the final on Saturday.
Christopher Zeller netted the winner in the 16th minute with a ferocious penalty corner before the Germans warded off repeated Spanish attacks to strike gold in field hockey's 100th year at the Olympics.
Germany added the Olympic title to the World Cup triumph two years ago, reinforcing their credentials as the sport's foremost nation despite losing the number one ranking to Australia in June.
The Spanish strikers, led by the seasoned Santi Freixa, raided the rivals' half through 70 minutes of gripping hockey, but could not get past the sturdy German defence that packed a powerful punch.
Freixa, who had scored five goals in the competition, failed to convert three penalty corners as Germany built on their 1-0 win over Spain in the preliminary league.
Meanwhile, Athens Olympic champions Australia won the bronze medal with a spectacular 6-2 win over the Netherlands earlier on Saturday.
Germany improved upon their bronze medal finish at Athens four years ago, when they beat Spain 4-3 in the play-off, to win their first gold since the Barcelona Olympics in 1992.
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