It was the first gold of the Games for the Chinese, a powerhouse in Summer Games but who only won their first Winter gold in Salt Lake City four years ago, also in short track.
Bulgaria's Evgenia Radanova did her best to capture gold in the last metres of the race but it was the Chinese 20-year-old who made it across just ahead, punching the air in glory.
Wang won all four World Cup 500 races this season and was by far the favourite to win here in Turin but she looked tense before the final, repeatedly wiping her blades and fiddling with her boot.
At the end of the race, she had no doubts that she had won, roaring in delight and speeding across to her coach for a hug and to pick up a huge Chinese flag which she took on a victory lap of the Palavela rink.
Radanova, who gave Wang a run for her money in the semi-finals, again skated right on her heels and fell as soon as she crossed the line a whisker behind Wang.
The 2002 silver medallist and European champion looked disappointed as she took the second step on the podium while Wang jumped up and down on the gold spot, giving the thumbs up and V for victory sign and kissing the Chinese flag on her top.
Canada's Anouk Leblanc-Boucher, seen as an outsider coming into the Olympics, crossed the line almost at the same time as China's Fu Tianyu and thought she had been pipped to the podium until Fu was disqualified for crossing.
Leblanc-Boucher looked as happy as if she had won the gold, hardly believing she was stepping up on to the Olympic podium having only ever won one World Cup medal in the 500 in 2004/05.
From Eurosport.com
