WIMBLEDON - Venus Williams won tennis' most prestigious tournament for the fourth time yesterday, beating surprising finalist Marion Bartoli 6-4, 6-1.

It was Williams' sixth Grand Slam title, and her first since winning Wimbledon in 2005. She was also the champion at the All England Club in 2000 and 2001.

At No. 31, Williams became the lowest-ranked women's winner in Wimbledon history. Plagued in recent years by injuries that sent her ranking sliding, she rediscovered her championship form this week on the surface that always seems to inspire her best efforts.

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"It has been a long road back," Williams said during the trophy ceremony. "I brought it together here against some of the best players in the world, including Marion."

Williams is the fourth woman in the Open era to win four or more Wimbledon singles titles, joining Martina Navratilova (9), Steffi Graf (7) and Billie Jean King (4). King also won Wimbledon singles titles in 1966-67, before the Open era began in 1968.

While the tournament was plagued by rain for much of the past two weeks, the final took place right on schedule - and in warm sunshine, the best weather of the fortnight.

Williams served out the first game at love, then broke serve when Bartoli double-faulted. They played 19 minutes before Bartoli won a game to make it 3-1, prompting cheers of encouragement from a Center Court crowd eager for a competitive match.

And it was - for a while. The Frenchwoman, playing in her first Grand Slam final, settled down to reach 3-all. But she double-faulted for the fourth time for set point, and Williams converted by charging forward to put away a backhand volley.

She kept up the pressure to start the second set, winning the first three games. Both players then requested medical timeouts - Bartoli to have her left foot retaped, and Williams to have her upper-left thigh taped.

Williams said she strained her thigh early in the second set, and the pain spread to her stomach.

"I'm so glad this is the last match, because I'm done. This is it. The leg is done, needs a break," she said. "Adrenaline sets in. After the match, it really started hurting."

Following the 11-minute medical timeouts, the 19th-ranked Bartoli held serve to close to 3-1. She had rallied from a set down in her past three matches, including a shocking win Friday over top seed Justine Henin.

But this time, there would be no comeback.

Williams hit a backhand winner to break serve for 5-1, and closed out the victory with a 124-mph service winner that handcuffed a weary Bartoli.

With Wimbledon paying equal prize money to men and women for the first time this year, Williams wo

Williams has been among the most vocal proponents of equal prize money. She broached the subject during the trophy ceremony, paying tribute to Billie Jean King's role and prompting a roar of delight from the crowd.

"Thank you, All England Club - we're playing under equal terms," she said.

Meanwhile Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal will meet again in the men's final today.

Four-time defending champion Federer, who will be aiming to equal Bjorn Borg's record of five Wimbledon titles, reached his ninth consecutive major final yesterday, beating Richard Gasquet 7-5, 6-3, 6-4.

"It has become sort of a routine, but I'm still so excited to be back in the final," said Federer, who beat Nadal to win last year's title but lost to the Spaniard in the last two French Open finals.

Nadal set up a rematch at Wimbledon when No. 4 Novak Djokovic withdrew while trailing 3-6, 6-1, 4-1.

b Harel Levy's surprise run in the men's doubles came to an end Friday in the quarterfinals. Levy and his partner Rajeev Ram of the United States lost 6-3, 6-2, 6-2 to the 10th seed French pair Arnaud Clement and Michael Llodra.

After winning the mixed doubles in their debut as team at the French Open Andy Ram and Nathalie Dechy last month the seventh seeds had hoped to repeat their success at Wimbledon but crashed out Friday 6-4, 6-4 to the unseeded pair of Sybille Bammer of Austria and Lukasz Kobot of Poland.