HADLEIGH, England (AP) — Julie Bresset of France won the mountain bike gold medal at her first Olympics, rolling through the English countryside and waving her country's flag as she finished.

Bresset dominated the picturesque course at Hadleigh Farm on Saturday. She took advantage of a mistake by defending gold medalist Sabine Spitz of Germany to build a massive lead, then rolled through the last of six laps all alone.

The 23-year-old Bresset started blowing kisses to cheering fans on the final straight, grabbed a French flag and proudly waved it as she crossed under the finishing banner.

Spitz wound up with the silver medal, and Georgia Gould of the United States claimed bronze.

It was only the second Olympic medal in mountain biking for the Americans, who are credited with developing the sport in the 1970s. Susan DeMattei captured bronze at the 1996 Atlanta Games.

Bresset's victory could bode well for France.

Julien Absalon will try to win his third straight gold medal in the men's race Sunday. He'll have to beat a field that includes Switzerland's Nino Schurter, his biggest rival on the World Cup scene.

The women's race went off under blue skies at Hadleigh Farm, where a 2.9-mile course was carved out of rolling hills and woodlands overlooking an estuary of the River Thames.

Britain's Annie Last took the initiative on the opening loop, generating a massive cheer from thousands of fans who packed into the natural amphitheater near the start-finish line.

Last remained in the lead when the riders headed onto the main course, which was changed from the Olympic test event to make it far more demanding.

Bresset finally attacked on a flat section, the under-23 world champion pushing the tempo and opening a small gap on the field as it finished Lap 1.

Last started to struggle with the pace, falling away by the second lap, and Canada's Catharine Pendrel soon joined her in trailing the leaders. Spitz and Gould began giving chase, and the three of them worked together for a short time to put nearly 30 seconds on the rest of the field.

Bresset caught a break when Spitz crashed over a technical section of the course called "the rock garden," which also slowed Gould and left Bresset alone at the front.

She used blazing speed on the downhill sections to build her lead, and it was 33 seconds when she crossed the line to mark two laps remaining. Spitz and Gould appeared stronger on the short, punchy climbs, but they struggled to reel in the strongest rider in the field.

Bresset's lead was so large entering the final lap that she crossed the finish line just as the chasing riders were dropping into the natural arena created by a pair of gently sloping hillsides.

Bresset had plenty of time to enjoy the scenery on her final lap, starting her celebration with the finishing banner — and none of her competitors — within sight.

The overall World Cup champion dismounted just after the line, pumping her fist and then raising her bike over her head in triumph, a smile sprawled across her face.

Gunn-Rita Dahle Flesjaa of Norway, who won gold at the 2004 Athens Games, was never in contention after puncturing a tire on a remote section of the course and hiking back to her support team.

Maja Wlosczowska of Poland, the silver medalist from Beijing, didn't start the race. She broke a bone in her foot during a training ride in Italy and was unable to compete.