Australian Dane Bird-Smith was happy with a personal best, but not so much with the way the men's 20km walk panned out at the world athletics championships.
The 25-year-old stripped nine seconds off his PB, clocking one hour 19 minutes and 28 seconds on Sunday, which ended up being good enough for sixth spot in a race won by Colombian Eider Arevalo in 1:18:53.
The minor medals went to Russian Sergei Shirobokov, competing in London as an affiliated athlete, and Brazil's Caio Bonfim.
Having claimed a breakthrough bronze medal at last year's Rio Olympics, Bird-Smith arrived in London confident of another podium finish.
But it wasn't to be.
"I can't be disappointed with sixth in a PB but it wasn't the race I wanted to race and I am a bit disappointed in that," said Bird-Smith, who received two cautions from the judges during the race on a hot, sunny day on The Mall in central London.
"I had a lot more to give and I could have raced it better on my own, but I was influenced by what the other guys were doing around the track.
"I just couldn't find the rhythm and I was a target in that pack."
Fellow Australian Rhydian Cowley was 56th in 1:30:40.
Regan Lamble was the first Australian home in the women's 20km walk in 22nd place - well below her breakthrough ninth last year in Rio.
Beki Smith was 38th and Claire Tallent - the wife of 2012 50km Olympic champ Jared Tallent - was 43rd.
Tallent gave birth to her first son Harvey less than three months ago.
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