Non Stanford wins her first World Triathlon Series event in Madrid

Britain's Non Stanford claimed her first World Triathlon Series event by taking victory in the fourth round of the season in Madrid.

The 24-year-old from Swansea won by 26 seconds, with British team-mate Jodie Stimpson finishing in third place.

The 2012 World Under-23 champion missed races in Auckland and Yokohama, but was runner-up in San Diego in April.

"That was really hard," said Stanford. "I thought I had gone off too hard in the run but I held it together."

Germany's Anne Haug finished in second place, beating 24-year-old Stimpson, from Oldbury in the West Midlands, in a sprint finish.

The championship leader, Gwen Jorgensen from the United States, finished in fourth place.

Stanford's victory in Madrid, in a time of two hours, four minutes and 39 seconds, follows wins in the opening round of the 2013 French Grand Prix series in Dunkirk, and the European Cup in Portugal - and lifts her from 18th to fifth in the world rankings.

She now heads to Alanya in Turkey for the 2013 European Championships on 14 June before the World Triathlon Series resumes at Kitzbuhel in Austria next month.

Stanford, who trains in Leeds, said of her victory in Madrid: "The first part of the swim was brutal, the hardest I have done for a long time. I really had to work hard.

"The bike was never going to be easy. The other British girls really worked hard as well."