Local Victorian para-triathlete Alex Welsh has claimed silver at the ITU Paratriathlon World Cup in Sarasota, Florida, USA earlier this week.

In a rather unusual turn of events, a high level of algae in the water prevented the triathlon from going ahead, with athletes competing in a duathlon instead.

Competing in the PWTC category, Welsh snagged silver in an outstanding effort, two minutes behind winner, German Benjamin Lenatz.

Lenatz got off to a strong start, stretching ahead of the field in the first 2.5km run. However, the Australian wasn’t going to let the race get away that quickly, with Welsh making a steady gain on Lenatz on the bike.

Despite his efforts, it wasn’t quite enough to catch Lenatz, with Welsh taking home the World Cup silver medal in impressive style.

Welsh finished with a time of 1:00:54, four minutes ahead of bronze medalist Pier Alberto Buccoliero.

With the 2017 ITU Paratriathlon World Cup having come to an end, Welch now turns his focus towards qualifying for the2018 Gold Coast Commonwealth Games.