QINGDAO --

Anna Tunnicliffe from the United States won Laser Radial gold at Olympic Sailing Regatta in Qingdao on Tuesday.

Anna Tunnicliffe of the US celebrates after winning the gold medal in the medal race of the Laser Radial class competition at the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games in Qingdao, Shandong province, August 19, 2008. [Agencies]

Having already been in the box seat going into the medal race, World No. 1 Tunnicliffe, with a seven-point advantage over her nearest rival, started with 8th and 9th finishes by the first and second mark respectively. She rebounded to 3rd by the third mark and kept the rhythm till the finishing line, gaining 37 points overall.

Gintare Volungeviciute from Lithuania, finishing first in the medal race, took the silver with 42 points.

World No. 2 Xu Lijia came out strongly in the medal race, keeping 4th position through all the marks. With 50 points overall, she claimed bronze, which is also China's first ever Olympic medal in the Laser Radial class.