Buckhurst Hill triathlete Claire Bloom returned to action by qualifying for the 2022 World Championships after 20 months without any racing action.

The event at Eton Dorney Lake was the first qualifying race for the 55-59 Age Group at the 2022 World Championships in Montreal and Bloom needed a top-four finish to secure her place.

Unusually for a sprint triathlon it was a staggered start with athletes entering the water at 10-second intervals due to social distancing rules.

Bloom, wanting to ensure a good start, entered the water third but with no opportunity for a warm-up swim or time to acclimatise to the cold 13.9 degree water and having only swum once in open water this year, it made for a freezing start.

Bloom had a decent 750m swim and exited in a time of 14.23 in fifth place having been overtaken by two other athletes in her age group.

Ilford Recorder: Triathlete Claire Bloom returns to racing actionTriathlete Claire Bloom returns to racing action (Image: AWOL adventure)

With long transitions due to the spacing of the racking area Bloom moved up into fourth place.

A four-lap bike section of 21.2km on closed roads always makes for a fast bike leg at Eton Dorney and by lap three Bloom had moved up into third place overall in her age group, finishing the leg in 39.23.

In the final leg, a 5km run around the lake, Bloom secured a third-place finish with a run time of 23.11 for 1:21.47 overall.

Bloom said: "It felt so good to be back racing again. Hard having to compete in a qualifier with the field fully loaded with top athletes all looking to secure their places but well worth the pain.

“I was pleased to get qualification out of the way and can now concentrate on securing a place in the GB European team with another qualifier in July.

“I can't thank Human Race enough for putting the event on and ensuring everyone's safety."