BMX cyclist Mariana Pajon won Colombia's first gold medal at the 2012 Olympics in London

BMX cyclist Mariana Pajon won Colombia's first gold medal at the 2012 Olympics in London Friday, securing her country's seventh medal in what already had become Colombia's most successful Olympics ever.

The 20-year old athlete won the womens' finals of the BMX cycling competition.

The Medellin native beat New Zealand's Sarah Walker and Dutchwoman Laura Smulders who respectively won silver and bronze.

Pajon's gold medal is Colombia's second ever at an Olympics; the first was won in 2000 by weightlifter Maria Isabel Urrutia.

The London Olympics by far have become the South American country's most successful Olympics ever.

Minutes after Pajon, male BMX cyclist Carlos Mario Oquendo won bronze in the men's category, lifting Colombia's total number of medals to eight.

The country's old record was set in 1972 when Colombian athletes brought home three medals.

A former world champion, Pajon achieved the dream of her life by claiming the top spot on the podium to give Colombia its first gold medal of the London Games, and its second ever.

"I'm very happy and proud," she said. "I won't believe it until I wake up with my gold medal after going to sleep with it. This is a very strong moment for Colombia cycling."

The 20-year-old Pajon was still a child when weightlifter Maria Isabela Urrutia won Colombia's first gold in Sydney 12 years ago.

"It was a great moment for Colombia," she said. "Back then I had turned my focus to gymnastics and I thought I would come to the Olympics as a gymnast. I saw those moments and they filled me with pride and I wanted to come to the Olympics. Then BMX was introduced in Beijing and I started training."

BMX, a sport where risk-taking approaches often pay off, was suited for Pajon's fiery temper.

"I started racing when I was 3 and I realized I could do this and do it well," she said. "I started winning at 4 with the boys and won my first world title at 8."

On Friday, Pajon led from the start and crossed the line in 37.706 seconds after a flawless run. With David Beckham watching from the stands, she hit form at the right time after being hampered by a shoulder injury earlier this season.

"I've been trying to win this my whole life. I just wanted go out of the gate and win it. It's unbelievable," she said.

Seconds after crossing the line, Pajon blew kisses to the capacity crowd as members of the Colombian team started to celebrate. She then was cheered by a couple dozen Colombian fans packed into a small section of the stands.

"Off the track I'm all woman, but on the track I change completely and I become aggressive and I race like a man," Pajon said. "Then at the end of the race I become a girl again and of course I cried. I didn't believe it. I cried lot of tears. This a dream come true."

Pajon credited her win on the dangerous course to the quick start coming out of the first corner ahead of her rivals. Pajon had posted three consecutive wins in the semifinals earlier Friday.

"I have tried so hard for it, and I just did it," she said. "I felt really strong, I had really good gates and that's it. I really had fun on it."