Beth Potter has missed out on winning gold for Team GB following a thrilling finish to the women's triathlon race. After heading into the final running lap in the leading group with Julie Derron, home favourite Cassandre Beaugrand, and Emma Lombardi, the 32-year-old couldn't sustain her attack as she eventually finished third.

It was Beaugrand who powered through to take gold in 1:54:55, to the delight of a partisan home crowd, with Derron (1:55:01) of Switzerland in second.

Potter clocked 1:55:16 for a first ever Olympic medal, having been among a leading pack of 10 athletes following the swimming and cycling legs.

Pick up your ultimate guide to the Olympics! Going for Gold provides the day-by-day rundown of what's on and when. Click here to buy.

But by the time the final of the four 2.5km laps had come around, that number had been cut to four. And the lead changed hands on several occasions before Potter, who competed for Team GB over 10,000m at the 2016 Rio Olympics, found herself unable to match the surge of Beaugrand.

However, the Scot appeared overjoyed as she crossed the line, smiling broadly before putting her hands over the mouth. And afterwards, she declared herself delighted to win a medal.

"I'm so happy to come away with a bronze," she told the BBC. "I've come a long way in eight years. I feel like I did it for me, but also did it for everyone who has helped me in the past eight years and believed in me from day one. It's for them back home as well."

And she admitted to hanging on in the final stages to hold off Lombardi and secure third. "I dug really deep," she said. "And I found something else."

Team GB's Georgia Taylor-Brown had also come out of the final transition phase in contention, but tailed off during the early stages of the run to finish sixth. Kate Waugh meanwhile, crossed the line in 15th.

It was reigning Olympic champion Flora Duffy who had set the pace during the swimming and early stages of the cycling. But the Bermudian, 36, was unable to sustain the pace thereafter and eventually finished fifth behind Lombardi.

Taylor-Brown was seen embracing her team-mate afterwards, and also hailed herself content with her own performance despite failing to keep pace on the running leg. "I was happy to make the front pack," she said.

"I was like ok, this is where I need to be. But we went on the run and I had nothing in me and they (the leaders) were just amazing. Super-fast today."