(L-R) Silver medalist Maria Sharapova of Russia, gold medalist Serena Williams of the US and bronze medalist Victoria Azarenka of Belarus stand on the podium during the medal ceremony at the 2012 Summer Olympics Saturday. — AP WIMBLEDON — Serena Williams became only the second woman to complete a career Golden Slam when she won her first Olympic singles gold medal Saturday by beating Maria Sharapova 6-0, 6-1. The victory completed a remarkable run of domination by the No. 4-seeded Williams, who lost only 17 games in her six matches. She went 13-0 this summer at the All England Club, where she won her fifth Wimbledon title a month ago. The career Golden Slam was first achieved by Steffi Graf, who did it when she won the Olympics in 1988 after sweeping all four major titles. It took the No. 3-seeded Sharapova 45 minutes to win a game, and by then she trailed 6-love, 3-love. Serena dominated with her serve and repeatedly blasted winners from the baseline, taking a big swing with almost every stroke despite the gusty wind on Centre Court that rippled her dress. Top-seeded Victoria Azarenka of Belarus won the bronze by beating No. 14-seeded Maria Kirilenko of Russia 6-3, 6-4. Sharapova's loss allowed Azarenka to retain the No. 1 ranking. Venus Williams and Serena secured a chance for another medal by beating Maria Kirilenko and Nadia Petrova of Russia 7-5, 6-4 in the women's doubles semifinals. Their opponents in the final will be Andrea Hlavackova and Lucie Hradecka of the Czech Republic. Top seeds Bob and Mike Bryan won men's doubles gold with a 6-4, 7-6 (2) win over Michael Llodra and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga of France. First-time Olympians Richard Gasquet and Julien Benneteau of France won the bronze medal by beating David Ferrer and Feliciano Lopez of Spain, 7-6 (4), 6-2. Indian pair Leander Paes and Sania Mirza bowed out of the Olympics with a 7-5, 7-6 (7-5) quarterfinal loss to Belarus top seeds Max Mirnyi and Victoria Azarenka. — Agencies
