Triathlon: David McNamee targets world's best after Kitzbuhel performance

The athlete, from Stirling, was less than two minutes behind Great Britain team-mate Alistair Brownlee who romped to victory to move to the top of the rankings. McNamee believes he can now build on the result to maintain his outside chance of an Olympic spot. "It was a good race and a move in the right direction," he said.

There was disappointment for Glasgow's Kerry Lang who dropped out on the run leg in her first race in three months. "I just had an empty tank," she admitted. "I think five weeks after shoulder surgery was a bit ambitious to be up against the best in the world." Nairn-born Helen Jenkins came second behind Paula Findlay after losing out in a sprint finish, the Canadian collecting her third World Championship Series win of the season.

In a repeat of the final stages in Madrid two weeks ago, the pair gradually pulled away from all their rivals on the run and it was Findlay who possessed the greater strength in the closing metres as she cemented her place as the world No 1.

Jenkins was the only athlete able to keep up with American Sarah Haskins in the swim and the pair began the bike phase with a decent lead over the field. It was from a similar position that Jenkins had won the world title in 2008, when she and Haskins built up an advantage of two minutes, but this time they were gradually reeled in and a large group began the run together.

Elsewhere, Fraser Cartmell won the Scottish Sprint Championships in Lochgelly.