Most young triathletes would probably be quite content with being the second best in the world.

But it is a testament to Flora Duffy?s huge talent and ambition that the silver medal she won at the ITU World Junior Triathlon Championships in Lausanne, Switzerland over the weekend has not remotely quenched her thirst for success.

Speaking from London yesterday before leaving for Germany to compete in the Hamburg World Cup event this Sunday ? where she will earn points towards qualification for the 2008 Beijing Olympics ? the 18-year-old insisted she could have won the race and cursed some moments of bad luck which ultimately left her nine seconds adrift of winner Kirsten Sweetland of Canada.

?I?d say I?m happy with the silver medal rather than very happy,? Duffy said, who completed the 750-metre swim, 20k bike ride and 5k run in one hour, five minutes and seven seconds.

?Part of me knows that I could have won had a few things gone in my favour. I was in fourth place after the swim but during transition my wetsuit got stuck when I was trying to take it off which meant the group I left the water with was around ten seconds ahead of me at the start of the bike.

?I then used up quite a lot of energy trying to close that gap, and when I did eventually catch up it coincided with a really steep hill on the course.

?So while the group pushed ahead up the hill, I was already out of breath and struggling a little bit and I wasn?t able to stay with them. I felt a little lethargic.

?At the beginning of the run I didn?t feel that great either and I started to think it could turn out to be a bad day ? but I eventually found a rhythm, really went for it and all of a sudden I was in second.

?I?d never competed against the girl from Canada before ? I?d heard beforehand that she was the best in Canada and that she would be one to look out for. She said afterwards that she had had a perfect race, and I think it would have been extremely close without the problems I had in transition.

?But a lot of people were saying how the junior women?s field was one of, if not the, strongest there had ever been in the world championships so I cannot be too disappointed.?

Meanwhile, Duffy spent yesterday visiting a foot specialist who fitted her with some brand new orthotics to prevent a return of shin splints ? an old injury which has stayed away for over a year ? and she will fly to Hamburg later this week to begin her preparations.

Duffy?s only other appearance in a World Cup event ? which always attracts the elite of world triathlon ? came in Salford, England in July where she placed 24th.

She is confident, however, that she is fitter and stronger this time around and hopes to place ?at least in the top 20?.

?I wasn?t as well prepared in Salford as I am now,? she said.

?Again all the best women triathletes in the world are going to be there so the challenge is huge. But the course for the elite women at the world championships was an extremely tough one and some of them may still be tired from that ? at least that?s what I?m hoping!

?Physically I?m feeling fine, though ? perhaps a little tired after the weekend ? but I should be fine once the race starts.?

The Hamburg event, like all World Cup races, will take place over the Olympic-standard distance of a 1.5 kilometre swim, a 40k bike ride and a 10k run.