The year 2014 keeps on getting better for Flora Duffy, whose arguably greatest achievement came today when she pulled a runner-up finish out of the hat at the Zittau ITU Cross Triathlon World Championships in Germany.

The 26-year-old Bermudian, who was listed well down the start list despite her efforts on the Xterra circuit this season, got on the speed from the outset on a challenging course and held off the late closers for a fantastic finish that comes on the heels of a meritorious eighth place at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow.

Only Katrin Müller, of Germany, proved a match for Duffy, passing the Bermudian on the mountain bike course en route to a winning time of 2hr 58min 35sec, with Duffy not far behind in 3:00:53.

Duffy was first out of the water in the 1.5-kilometre swim in a dazzling 20:25. Erin Densham, the well-fancied Australian, was 23 seconds behind Duffy out the first transition, but of more imminent danger was Müller, who completed the swim in 22:01.

That gave the German a foothold into the race and she reeled in Duffy and opened a 2½-minute lead after a dominant mountain bike on 36km of terrain that included a 105-metre ascent.

Her chance of the gold medal having slipped away, with the likes of defending champion Helena Erbenova not much more than a minute behind, Duffy might have been expected to slip off the podium places. But, not only did she keep a firm hold of silver, but the winner this year of the three Xterra events in the United States and the Asia-Pacific Championship in Australia extended the gap to third.

Duffy completed the mountain bike in 2:02:02 and clocked 36:29 for the 9km trail run, the fastest of any of the finishers in the top ten. “I have never been so muddy in my life,” Duffy said on her Twitter page. “Pleased with silver, but hungry for the elusive gold.”

Erbenova came into the event as favourite, with two world titles and a winter triathlon crown to her name, but she could never fully recover from being five minutes off the pace after the swim and faded as the trail run progressed. She ended a distant third in 3:02:32.

Densham was the only one in the 29-strong elite women’s field who did not finish the gruelling race.

The other favourite, Renata Bucher, of Switzerland, who was one of two, including Müller, to have beaten Erbenova in recent times, was seventh in 3:07:24.

The men’s race was won by Rubén Ruzafa, of Spain, in 2:34:33, with Conrad Stoltz, the overwhelming favourite from South Africa, having to settle for eighth in 2:40:42.