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HAMBURG, Germany - Lauren Groves of Vancouver battled through pounding rain to finish fourth in the fifth leg of the world championship triathlon series on Saturday.

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THE ASSOCIATED PRESS/ ITU, Delly Carr, ho

In this photo released by ITU World Championships, athletes dive for the start of the Dextro Energy Triathlon - ITU World Championship in Hamburg, Germany, Saturday July 25 2009.

The 27-year-old Groves finished in one hour 57 minutes 58 seconds in the cold, wet and windy conditions.

"That was really tough out there today and I'm proud of myself to pull through and finish fourth," said Groves, who missed the podium by 19 seconds. "Many may consider me a hot-weather racer, but I proved today that I can compete in all conditions.

"It wasn't a podium finish, but I am really happy with finishing fourth."

Australia's Emma Moffatt won in 1:56:12 for her second straight victory and third of the season. Sweden's Lisa Norden captured silver in 1:57:06, while Switzerland's Daniela Ryf rounded out the podium at 1:57:39.

Montreal's Kathy Tremblay was 10th, while Paula Findlay of Edmonton finished 15th.

Groves rebounded from a difficult 1.5-kilometre swim in the Alster River to hold strong within a large group of athletes, including Tremblay and Findlay, in the slick 40-kilometre bike ride.

"It was really awful on the bike and staying safe was the key," said Groves. "The group was just trying to be so careful on the corners and nobody was going to take any risks."

With the top three women pulling away in the run, Groves played a game of cat and mouse in her pack to take control down the stretch.

"I was so cold starting the run and needed to get the legs going a bit to warm up, but the second five-kilometres were great and it was fun to be able to play the game," said Groves, who is seventh in the overall standings of the inaugural eight-race World Championship Series.

"It is also great to see the Canadian women all near the top. We are all racing consistently and really pushing each other to get onto that podium."

The Series continues Sunday with the men's race. Canada will field four athletes including two-time Olympic medallist Simon Whitfield, Brent McMahon, Paul Tichelaar, and Kyle Jones.