As a result, she lost her world No. 1 ranking to eventual Roland Garros champion Maria Sharapova. Azarenka then competed at Wimbledon, winning her first four matches in straight sets. She then defeated Tamira Paszek in the quarterfinals, also in straight sets, before losing to Serena Williams for the sixth straight time in the semifinal, bringing their head-to-head 8–1 in Serena's favour. Nonetheless, she regained the world No. 1 ranking after the tournament due to Sharapova's loss in the fourth round. Later in the month, Azarenka took part in the 2012 Summer Olympics tennis event, held at the All England Club in Wimbledon, London. She entered two events, playing in both the women's singles, and the mixed doubles alongside ATP doubles world No. 1 Max Mirnyi. In singles, Azarenka won her first four matches, all in straight sets, before falling in the semifinals, losing for the third time of the season and the ninth time overall to eventual Gold Medallist Serena Williams. Azarenka rebounded by winning the bronze-medal match over Maria Kirilenko in straight sets, earning the first ever Olympic medal in tennis for Belarus. Azarenka got her first gold medal in the 2012 Summer Olympics on 5 August 2012 with Max Mirnyi for Belarus, defeating Andy Murray and Laura Robson of Great Britain in a tiebreak. Azarenka reached the quarterfinals for the first time at the 2012 US Open, winning her first four matches in straight sets for the loss of only ten games. There, she faced defending champion Samantha Stosur and eliminated her from the tournament in a two-and-a-half hour three-set thriller which was decided by a final-set tiebreak. Azarenka then faced former US Open champion and world No. 3 Maria Sharapova in the semifinal. Azarenka was able to come through the match after being a set down. In the final she faced former US Open champion and world No. 4 Serena Williams, losing for the eighth consecutive time despite serving for the match in the third set. In mid-September, Azarenka played an exhibition match against Dominika Cibulková in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam,[49] winning the match in straight sets. Azarenka then played at the Toray Pan Pacific Open in Tokyo where, in the quarters, she retired from the tournament due to dizziness. She then played the China Open, advancing to the quarterfinals without dropping a set. There she defeated Romina Oprandi and then eased past Marion Bartoli