Frenchman Thomas Hamon won the men's title in the elite cruiser final at the 2008 UCI BMX World Championship held in Taiyan, Shanxi province on Sunday, while the women's title was won by his teammate Magalie Pottier.

Hamon clocked 36.662 seconds for the win. Manuel de Vecchi of Italy finished second in 36.948 and Jonathan Suarez of Venezuela was third in 37.518.

"It's my first champion in elite. I'm happy to win," said Hamon.

In the women's event, French Magalie Pottier finished 42.972 seconds ahead of her teammate Amelie Despeaux for the win. Sarah Walker from New Zealand took the third place.

"It's great. I'm happy," said Magalie Pottier.

The event, with a total of 875 competitors from 33 countries and regions, offered the riders the last opportunity to get the qualification for the 2008 Olympics.

This is also the first time for China to hold a BMX World Championships.

(Xinhua News Agency June 2, 2008)