Tunnicliffe of US wins Laser Radial sailing gold

QINGDAO, China (AP) Anna Tunnicliffe of the United States has won the gold medal in Laser Radial sailing, after coming from behind in the final medal race to finish second and secure the top spot on overall points.

Gintare Volungeviciute took the silver for Lithuania's first sailing medal in an Olympics, while China's Xu Lijia took bronze.

British-born Tunnicliffe was ahead on overall points going into the final medal race on Tuesday. But the American needed a solid place to snatch the win.

The 25-year-old was down as far as ninth out of 10 boats that qualified for the final. Tunnicliffe says she spotted a wind shift on the third leg, fought her way up to third, and finished 11 seconds behind Volungeviciute to take the gold on total points after 10 races.

Copyright 2010 by STATS LLC and Associated Press. Any commercial use or distribution without the express written consent of STATS LLC and Associated Press is strictly prohibited.