Olympic champion Jonathan Edwards had to settle for silver in the World Indoor Athletics Championships triple jump competition in Lisbon as Italian outsider Paolo Camossi triumphed

Edwards, aiming to win his first-ever world indoor title, failed to show his best form and finished second with a best jump of 17.26 metres compared with Camossi's 17.32 metres

The lead changed four times in a nail-biting competition and the Briton been out of the medals until his final jump, which propelled him to a podium finish.

Camossi set a national record in the fourth round, with unheralded Australian Andrew Murphy finishing third.

Edwards takes lead

Edwards was unhappy with the early start and the temporary runway, but he made a positive start.

Edwards was the first competitor to jump and he cleared a very reasonable distance of 17.06 metres.

At the end of the first round that distance was good enough to give him the lead

In the second round the world outdoor record holder increased his leading mark by a further six centimetres at 17.12 metres.

But defending champion Charles Friedek - the only person to have beaten Edwards in his five competitions prior to the championships - bounced into contention, taking the lead with a leap of 17.13 metres in the third round.

Then the 31-year-old Australian Murphy produced a jump of 17.15 metres in the fourth round to take a surprise lead.

Winning jump

Murphy, a former model and whose previous best was 16.96 metres when finishing fifth in the 1997 Championships, is coached by Keith Connor, winner of the 1982 European title for Great Britain and now coaching in Australia.

But then Camossi produced his winning leap with his fourth jump, an Italian record which went well past his previous best of 17.05.

Murphy improved to 17.20 metres with his final jump to consolidate his second place before Edwards relegated him to the bronze medal position.

Defending champion Friedek had to settle for a fourth-place finish.