Rose Davies will quickly switch focus to Birmingham and a first Commonwealth Games campaign after making her debut at the world athletics championships in the US state of Oregon on Thursday (AEST).
Twelve months after the Merewether 22-year-old became an Olympian in Tokyo, she finished 15th in her heat and 27th overall in the women's 5000-metre event. The first five runners from each heat and the next five fastest across both qualified for the final.
In a tough heat, won by world record-holder Letesenbet Gidey (Ethiopia) in a time of 14 minutes and 52.27 seconds, Davies clocked 15:45.95.
It was well off her personal best mark of 15:07.09, which she produced at the Australian titles in Sydney on April 2.
Compatriot Natalie Rule did not finish her earlier heat of the 5000m in Eugene, Oregon, pulling out at the halfway point in clear distress.
Jessica Hull, the Australian record-holder over 1500m and 5000m, was a non-starter after testing positive to COVID on Wednesday (AEST), a day after finishing seventh in the 1500m final.
Hull has gone straight into a mandatory five-day isolation period at her home in Portland and will skip the Australian team's pre-Commonwealth Games camp in the south-eastern English town of Tonbridge. She will have to undergo PCR tests 72 hours before entering the athletes village and again on arrival in Birmingham.
Hull is the first member of the 64-strong Australian team in Eugene to test positive to COVID-19 during the 10-day world titles.
Davies will make her Commonwealth Games debut in the England city of Birmingham, racing the 10,000m on August 3 and 5000m on August 7. Both will be straight-out finals.
