France’s Bresset wins maiden gold

France’s Julie Bresset capped an extraordinary year by storming to victory in the women’s mountain bike cross country to claim her maiden Olympic title on Saturday. Germany veteran Sabine Spitz claimed the silver to complete her Olympic collection with Georgia Gould of the United States winning the bronze as British gold contender Annie Last finished in eighth. Bresset was among an early group of fast pace-setters on the Hadleigh Farm course and their punishing rhythm thinned out the field over the first two of the race’s six laps. By the end of the third lap the 23-year-old Frenchwoman had opened up a slight lead on Spitz and the rest. A lap further on, she increased her advantage to 33secs after Spitz and Gould were momentarily held up when the German came off her bike on a rocky downhill section. “I wanted to be at the front, to be in control of things in the technical parts so as not to lose any precious time,” said Bresset. It was only last year Bresset won the under-23 world title but since then she has claimed victory in the 2012 World Cup series. From:Gulftoday