Erica Hawley finished an impressive seventh in a highly competitive elite women’s field at the World Triathlon Cup Asunción in Paraguay on Sunday.

The Bermudian completed the race in a combined time of 1hr 57min 31sec, 1:27 behind race winner American Danielle Orie, who crossed the line in 1:56:04. Hawley bagged some valuable points in the race for Olympic qualification.

It was a massive improvement for the 28-year-old after she settled for eighteenth position at the World Triathlon Cup Rio de Janeiro in Brazil a week before. She almost matched her performance at the World Triathlon Cup Edmonton, where she finished sixth.

Hawley negotiated the 1.5km swim in 19:25, needed 1:01:11 to complete the 40km bike ride, and ran 10km in 34:33. Her consistency across all three disciplines put her in contention throughout and she moved through the field on the run to secure a top-ten finish against a strong international field.

In the elite men’s race of the same event, Hawley’s compatriot Tyler Smith did not complete his race after a tyre puncture forced him to withdraw.

The Bermuda Half-Marathon Derby champion went to Paraguay in high spirits after securing bronze at the Central American and Caribbean Games in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.