Cooke edged out of medals in sprint finish

Great Britain's Nicole Cooke finished fourth after a brave effort in the elite women's road race at the Road World Championships in Australia.

The reigning Olympic champion led the way for much of the second half of the race alongside Judith Arndt of Germany.

Welsh star Cooke and Arndt held an 11-second lead over the chasing pack with 3km to go but were hauled in by Italy's eventual winner Giorgia Bronzini.

Holland's Marianne Vos took silver, with Swede Emma Johansson in third.

As the race reached its climax, Arndt sprinted first with about 500m to go, with Cooke on her wheel, but both were caught and passed by the top three within 200m of the finish.

Cooke's fellow Briton Elizabeth Armitstead finished ninth while Wednesday's time-trial victor Emma Pooley finished 20th, four places behind another British rider, Sharon Laws.

Bronzini described her sprint finish as the best of her career and paid tribute to her manager Franco Ballerini who was killed in a rallying accident earlier this year.

Vos was left to contemplate her four successive runner-up finish in the event.

French legend Jeannie Longo, who will turn 52 next week, finished in 12th place only three seconds down.

"In the sprint I got closed in in the final 200 metres, but I'm not unhappy with 12th place. It's respectable," she said.

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