Britain’s Beth Potter fought for the Olympic bronze medal in triathlon to gain clearance for the 2024 race in Paris after days of uncertainty about the water quality of the Seine.

Reigning world champion Potter, 32, defended his third place after standing out in a leading group of four runners in the final running phase, while Cassandre Beaugrand took gold for host nation France.

Beaugrand, 27, crossed the finish line after one hour, 54 minutes and 55 seconds, six seconds ahead of Swiss rider Julie Derron.

Eight years after finishing 34th in the women’s 10,000m at Rio 2016, Potter was nine seconds back, while her British teammate Georgia Taylor-Brown finished sixth.

“I’m so happy. I wanted gold but Cassandre and Julie were just too good for me and I’m super happy to have taken bronze,” Potter told BBC Sport.

“I have achieved a lot in eight years. I did it for myself, but I also did it for everyone who helped me during these eight years and believed in me from day one. And it goes for them at home too.”

The men’s race was postponed for 24 hours on Tuesday after the water quality of the Seine no longer met the required standards following heavy rainfall.

However, both events were allowed to go ahead on Wednesday morning after World Triathlon conducted water analysis at 02:20 BST (03:20 local time) and the tests were deemed compliant.

The men’s race featuring Britons Alex Yee and Sam Dickinson is scheduled to start at 09:45 BST.

Potter’s switch to triathlon brings him an Olympic medal

It was one of the most remarkable moments in recent triathlon history that inspired Potter to switch to the multi-sport event.

When she watched Alistair Brownlee help her struggling younger brother Jonny across the finish line in a dramatic conclusion to the 2016 World Series, she knew what her future held.

After moving to Leeds to train with the Brownlees, former physics teacher Potter continued her upward trajectory, winning her first major medal with Commonwealth bronze in 2022 before securing her first world title in 2023.

This success put Potter among the favourites for the Olympic gold medal in Paris and also enabled her to capitalise on the extra confidence she gained from her victory in the Olympic test event here in Paris last August.

In the end, her chance of victory was gone, but the Briton timed her final effort perfectly, beat French athlete Emma Lombardi and secured her first Olympic medal.

Defending champion Flora Duffy of Bermuda dominated the first 1500m swim, where many athletes had to battle against the river’s current.

But after a chaotic 40km cycling stage, during which she experienced several crashes on roads muddy from the morning rain, she was exhausted.

Duffy finished fifth, behind an intense race for gold between a quartet of frontrunners in the 10k, where Lombardi joined the eventual medalists.

And while Beaugrand eventually broke the resistance of her gold medal rivals and thrilled the huge home crowds lining the streets, it was Derron and Potter who found the strength to get on the podium at the end of a grueling race.

Tokyo runner-up Taylor-Brown missed the medal ranks by 1 minute and 25 seconds, while Olympic debutant Kate Waugh finished 15th.