Serena Beats Sharapova for Gold

It all happened so fast. Tennis star Serena Williams took Olympic singles gold on Saturday in a match that hardly gave the capacity crowd time to get comfortable in their seats. In a little over one hour, Williams seemed nothing less than a force of nature as she won 6-0, 6-1. Both players had Golden Slams on the line—a rare opportunity to cap their four grand-slam titles with an Olympic gold medal. “Whether I win or lose, that’s not the big deal,” Williams said Friday of her impending match against the Russian pro. “The big deal for me, USA is guaranteed another medal.”