At 37 and the oldest in the field, a last-but-one place finish wasn?t exactly what triathlete Karen Smith had envisaged in what was likely her final appearance at a major Games.

But having had to overcome some considerable hurdles ? not least injuries, including a broken nose, severe bruising and cuts, sustained in a sickening collision with a car during last year?s World Age Group Championships in Hawaii ? earning her place on the Melbourne start line last Saturday was an accomplishment in itself.

Going into an event stacked with 25 of the world?s elite competitors, the Bermuda mother-of-two, who placed a creditable 15th at the last Commonwealth Games in Manchester, had been confident of holding her own.

Ultimately though, the wounds, both physical and psychological, suffered at her last big race and two months lost in training, left her with too much ground to make up.

?I think they (injuries) played a part,? said Smith as she reflected on a performance which saw her emerge from the 1.5 kilometre swim in last place and never threaten to catch those in front.

?I really had some problems with the run today which I wouldn?t normally have.

?I?ve been treated all week and was treated before I left Bermuda but the injuries came back to haunt me today.

?It?s not the reason completely for today?s performance but it played a part.?

Smith?s time of two hours, 22 minutes, 22.46 seconds was several minutes outside her personal best, leaving her in 24th place ahead only of non-finisher, Marie Rabie from South Africa.

?My time was off by a fair margin from what I?m capable, but it just wasn?t my day today,? she added.

?I actually felt pretty reasonable on the swim, I felt like I was having a good swim, but it just wasn?t one of those awesome days to remember.

?It was a great atmosphere here and really positive to be a part of this experience but you know . . . you?ve got a lot of world champions out there and top-ranked girls, so it?s not the time to have a bad day. It was a small field which made it a bit more difficult.

?I was back after the swim so I couldn?t ride with anyone. And when you?re on your own out there the distance is always going to keep increasing, it?s always easier to ride with a pack.

?But you know, I?m not disappointed with what I?ve done. It was tough to get here and tough to train for this. The race was incredible, the spectators were fantastic, this has to be a positive day for me.?

And if there was a silver lining, it was the performance of teenage team-mate Flora Duffy who carved almost five minutes off her previous best time as she stormed to a superb eighth-place finish.

?I?m so excited for that girl,? said Smith.

?She?s got such a bright future, she?s just so focused, so determined. And she will be a world champion very soon.

?Today was awesome for her and she deserved it.?

Race splits for Duffy showed that she completed the 1.5K swim in 19 minutes, 28 seconds, the 40K bike in 1:24.13 and the 10K run in 35:54 for a total time of 2:00:35.13.

Smith?s splits were: 23:39 (swim), 1:39:34 (bike) and 42:10 (run).