There will be no second Olympics for Sharon Donnelly.

The Kingston triathlete saw her road to Athens end abruptly during the final sprint to the finish at a World Cup event held yesterday in Edmonton.

Instead, it was Samantha McGlone of Montreal who secured the third and final Canadian Olympic women's team berth for the Athens Games. Donnelly led after the swim and bike portions of the race, but couldn't hold off McGlone during the final run segment of the race, which finished in heavy wind, hail and rain.

McGlone seized the lead with 600 metres to go in the 10-km run and finished 40 seconds in front of a heartbroken Donnelly.

They wound up 11th and 12th overall.

"I know how fast Sam's run is ... I didn't have enough (of a lead)," Donnelly told the Sun in a telephone interview last night from Edmonton. "She caught me with about 600 metres to go. I ran as hard as I could, but I'm not that fast of a runner at this point ... It's very frustrating."

Jill Savege of Toronto and Vancouver's Carol Montgomery had already secured berths on the Olympic women's triathlon team. Yesterday's result determined the third spot.

That Donnelly, who recovered from a major bike pileup to place 38th at the 2000 Sydney Olympics, was even able to contest that spot was a testament to her unshakeable will.

Donnelly revealed yesterday that she underwent surgery in February to repair a major tendon tear in her left shoulder -- an injury that kept her out of the water for nearly three months. The recovery process was filled with excruciating pain.

"I seriously thought about giving up," admitted Donnelly. "But I came to the conclusion that if I quit at the end of February, I might not do my rehab properly. So I thought that if I worked for July 11 like I've never worked for anything before ... that would be my goal."

While "there were people who were skeptical I'd ever be able to swim again at a certain level," she took every painful step necessary to reach yesterday's race. There would be no regrets -- a thought that gave her comfort yesterday in the face of a disappointing result.

"I have to look at it that way," said the former Orleans resident. "It's been hard, but very satisfying. I didn't think I could come this far."

While Donnelly plans to fulfil the rest of her race commitments this year, another run at the Olympics is unlikely.

"I can see myself doing some other things ... it's almost time to move on," said Donnelly, 36. "I'd like to stay involved in the sport.

"But right now," she added with a laugh, "I've got to stay fit in case one of the girls (on the Olympic team) breaks a leg. They might still be calling me to go to Athens. You never know."