Olympic and world champion Sally Pearson has made an encouraging return to competition, finishing third in the 60m hurdles at an indoor meet in Germany.
American Kendra Harrison, the outdoor 100m world record holder, claimed victory in Karlsruhe in 7.76 seconds, with German Cindy Roleder second in 7.90 and Pearson third in 7.91.
After recovering from the Achilles and hamstring injuries which ruled her out of last year's Rio Olympics, the 30-year-old Pearson chose to make her competitive return at a series of indoor meets in Europe, rather than as part of Nitro Athletics in Melbourne.
Her time on Saturday night was less than two tenths of a second shy of her 60m hurdles indoor PB of 7.73 set back in 2012.
"1st race done and dusted!! Soo (sic) happy to be back.. I now have the confidence to push my body and make more improvements," she tweeted.
News that makes sense
Your trusted source for staying up-to-date with the world around you. Get free daily news updates and analysis, straight to your inbox.
Pearson will continue her indoor campaign with further meets in Berlin, Dublin and Birmingham.
The Queenslander's main targets in the next 14 months are the world championships in London in August and next year's home Commonwealth Games on the Gold Coast.
