Olympics: Savinova wins 800 ahead of Semenya

London: World champion Mariya Savinova of Russia won the Olympic 800-meter title on Saturday, beating Caster Semenya of South Africa.

Russia also took the bronze with Ekaterina Poistogova. Savinova finished the race in a season's-best 1 minute, 56.19 seconds, beating Semenya by 1.04 seconds. Poistogova clocked 1:57.53.

Semenya was last with 250 meters to go, and her strong finishing kick only carried her to silver while Savinova raced away to an easy victory.

Semenya made her Olympic debut three years after being forced to undergo gender tests.