Emma-Kate Lidbury reached new heights when she finished tenth in the Abu Dhabi International triathlon.

The former Oxford Mail reporter was sixth after the 3k swim in 45mins 26secs.

She completed the 200k bike ride in 5hrs 37’mins, and the 20k run in 1hr 23mins, for a total time of 7.51.30.

She said: “ I’d never raced longer than 70.3k before.

“I was up against some of the strongest long-distance triathletes in the world, so recording a top-ten finish is an awesome start to my 2011 campaign.