Lizzy Yarnold was on the familiar terrain of the podium after she claimed skeleton bronze at the IBSF World Cup season opener in Lake Placid.
Yarnold, fifth at the halfway stage, sped down the course in a total time 1:50.46, which put her in top spot with four sliders to go, fellow Brit Laura Deas in second at that stage.
However, searing second runs from Austria’s Janine Flock and Elisabeth Vathje, of Canada, saw them take gold and silver respectively, pushing the Sochi 2014 Olympic champion into third place.
Double European champion Flock finished in a combined 1:50.13, 0.26 seconds ahead of Vathje and takes the top points haul of 225.
Yarnold has pedigree at Lake Placid, having scooped bronze there at the 2012 World Championships.
And despite missing out on gold, it was an impressive start to the season for the 29-year-old as she looks to build momentum ahead of defending her Olympic Winter Games title at PyeongChang 2018.
“I’m really pleased with my push starts on both runs - it’s the fastest I’ve ever gone,” said Yarnold.
“Third isn’t first, where I always aim to be, but, nonetheless, it’s a good start to the season and I’m raring to go for next week.”
Deas, eighth after the first run, briefly led the field with a tremendous second effort, but ultimately fell out of the medal positions and had to settle for fifth with a combined time of 1:50.69.
"That's a really good opener to the season. It gives me a platform to push on from," said Deas.
"I want to be in the top six consistently and be challenging for medals.
"I left myself a lot to do after the first run but I was really pleased with my push starts and with the way I pulled my way back into contention in the second run."
Ashleigh Pittaway, who won gold at the Youth Olympic Games in Lillehammer last year, finished 21st after her effort of 56.17, just missing out on a second run.
Sportsbeat 2017