Manx triathlete Will Draper rounded out his season with a second-place finish in the weekend’s Challenge Xiamen event in China.

Racing in the pro field on Sunday, the Island Games medallist had an excellent 1.9km swim exiting the water in fourth place.

This was followed by his usual strong 90km bike leg, coming into transition in joint second place.

The concluding half-marathon run was particularly tough with conditions becoming very hot and humid as the mid-morning sun broke through on the picturesque Huandong Coast.

Notwithstanding, the 24 year old, who is based in Leeds, dug deep to hold off high-quality opposition to finish a pro career best of second place in a brilliant time of 3 hours 41 minutes 56 seconds.

Posting on social media, Draper said: ‘The end of my 2024 season.

‘Thank you everyone who has helped me progress this year - the foundations have been getting laid for many years before but it is nice to start to see the fruits of our labour.

‘I am confident there is more to come if I work hard enough for it.’

The race was won by Serbian athlete Ongjen Stojanovic with New Zealander Jack Moody in third place.

Last month Draper finished fourth in the Challenge Vieux Boucau event in southwestern France, while in May he finished third in the series’ St Pölten in Austria.