Saskia Clark continued her preparations for the Beijing Olympics with a strong showing at the final event in the 2008 Royal Yachting Association Olympic Classes Spring Series at Hayling Island Sailing Club.

Mersea sailor Clark, together with skipper Christina Bassadone, topped the table in the combined 470 Class event at the end of the the two-day Spring Series event, which provides home-grown talents the chance to race against some of Skandia Team GBR's top performers.

Following a frustratingly slow start to the opening day's racing, as the sailors waited for the wind to build, Hannah Mills and Katrina Hughes were the leading female 470 crew at the close of play.

Clark and Bassadone completed finishes of first and second, but a disappointing seventh place in the opening race of the six-race event dropped them down the overall leaderboard.

Athens Olympics men's silver medallists Nick Rogers and Joe Glanfield topped the combined 470 results table with a first, second and third from the three races and were the ones to catch for Clark and Bassadone, who have been selected to represent Great Britain in the women's 470 Class at the Beijing Games in August.

The duo have had mixed success at their previous two regattas in Majorca and France, having made strong finishes after indifferent starts, but have been pleased with how their Olympic preparations have been continuing since adopting a new hull at the end of last year.

And they rose to the challenge on the second day of racing at the Spring Series, posting a steady third and two firsts to allow them to discard the seventh they picked up on the opening day and win the weekend by a point over Rogers and Glanfield.

Mills and Hughes finished in third, but combined with their sixth place at the first Spring Series event at the Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy in February, it was enough to see them take the overall 2008 Spring Series crown in the 470 women's event ahead of Clark and Bassadone.

"A great weekend of China-esque conditions and determined race management meant that the full complement of six races gave the China stars a chance to brush up on light winds and tidal sailing and the rest of the fleet a chance to line up against Britain's best," said Skandia Team GBR development squad manager Barrie Edgington.