Hewitt earns gutsy fourth

It was close but no cigar for New Zealand in the Commonwealth Games womens triathlon today.

All three New Zealanders finished in the top half of the 24-strong field, with Andrea Hewitt of Christchurch the strongest performer.

Hewitt, a bronze medallist in the event in Melbourne in 2006, was with the leaders until late in the run, but faded to finish fourth. Her consistency in major events is exemplary she was eighth in the 2008 Olympics and sixth in the 2012 Olympics, and has won three medals at world triathlon championships.

Behind her, fellow New Zealanders Nicky Samuels and Kate McIlroy were 10th and 12th.

It was a demanding day for the triathletes. Strathclyde Country Park in Motherwell offered a hilly, testing course and it was surprisingly hot as well.

Hewitt, 32, emerged from the water in eighth place and had an excellent bike ride. Going into the run she and Englishwoman Vicky Holland held a narrow lead.

On the run, Hewitt flagged, and was passed by Englishwoman Jodie Stimpson and Canadian Kirsten Sweetland. She drifted off the pace and trailed by 30 metres at one point, but tenaciously fought back to regain touch.

With about 3km remaining, the leaders cleared out and Hewitt could not respond.

Eventually Stimpson won in 1h 58.56s from Sweetland, 1h 59min 01s, and Holland 1h 59.11s. Hewitt was timed at 1h 59min 25s, which gave her a nine-second advantage over fifth-placed Australian Emma Jackson.

Samuels, fifth out of the water, was solid on the bike ride and the run and should regard a top 10 placing as justifying her selection, which was only confirmed after she appealed her original omission from the team.

McIlroy was not good in the swim, emerging from the water 13th, and faced an uphill battle from there. She was dogged by injury in her build-up to the Games, but 12th represented a reasonable effort.