Tyler Smith was delighted to pick up valuable world ranking points after finishing ninth in the Africa Triathlon Cup Yasmine Hammamet.

Smith was eighth out of the swim and first into transition after the bike leg before holding tough in the 5km run to finish in 54min 43sec, 50 seconds behind race winner Jarno Pousada Troitino, from Spain.

The Bermuda Half-Marathon Derby champion was delighted with his display as he feels the race contained more depth than his previous triathlon events.

“This was a deeper field than the races that I’ve been doing previously this year, so even though the finish position was another top ten, it really reflected an improved performance,” Smith said.

“It was a much stronger field than those I had been racing in as it was basically a European-dominated race because of Tunisia’s proximity to the rest of Europe.

“I was happy with how I executed swim, bike, and run, and it was nice to finish a race feeling like I did everything I could and I put myself in the perfect position to get a good result and I was kind of rewarded with that top ten.”

Smith was unsure in the build-up to the race as to whether his superb Derby victory had left a mark on him but was pleased that was not the case.

“I was pleasantly surprised and it was another hot day in Tunisia, so in some ways the Derby actually prepared me for another hot-weather race,” Smith said.

“Having that length of effort underneath me really changes your measuring stick, so 5k just feels so short in comparison and I knew I could redline it the whole way.

“The 5K is not as much of a strength as a 10k run as the 5k is a little bit more speed-based, especially it was a little bit of an easier bike, so I’m looking forward to the next two races that I have coming up over the an Olympic distance.”

Those two races will feature Smith representing Bermuda in international competition, with his next two targets being the Pan American Triathlon Championships in Chile in early July and the Central American and Caribbean Games in Dominican Republic in July.

“In the Pan American Championships we’ll have a good Bermudian team there, with myself, Nick Pilgrim and Erica Hawley competing in the seniors and Ollie Hayward and Jackson Langley competing in the juniors,” Smith said.

“It will be great to be involved in an event with a team of Bermuda athletes, so I’m looking forward to that, but the next three weeks of training are pretty critical.

“We’re going to return to some higher volumes of training and more intensity. I’m back in Girona, training with the group day in and day out, and with my coaches and my physios we’re just going to keep on chipping away at those 1 per cent things.

You’re not going to see huge differences in fitness in three weeks, but it’s just about building confidence, staying consistent, and trying to keep on progressing.”