The gulf between international youth competition and international senior events was all too evident this morning as Bermuda?s teenage long jump sensation Arantxa King failed to qualify for the Commonwealth Games final.

Of 17 jumpers competing in two qualifying groups at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, reigning world youth champion King could manage only 14th place with a best leap of 5.98 metres ? well short of her 6.39 personal record.

Looking nervous and sluggish off the runway with no spring in her step, the 16-year-old managed 5.95 on the first of her three jumps, 5.98 on the second and, needing to go over six metres on her final attempt to stand any chance of advancing, she hit what appeared to be her longest distance of the day only to be red flagged for overstepping the board.

Only the top 12 competitors and those exceeding 6.50 in the two qualifying groups, competing in separate pits side by side, advanced to Friday?s final.

Australia?s Bronwyn Thompson (6.71), England?s Jade Johnson (6.52) and Jamaica?s Elva Goulbourne (6.55) were the only automatic qualifiers while the 12th and final place went to the Seychelles? Celine Laporte with a leap of 6.21, a distance normally well within King?s reach.

Afterwards the Boston-based youngster, daughter of former track and field star Branwen Smith and Cup Match cricketer Adrian King, admitted she hadn?t felt at her best.

?I?m disappointed,? she said. ?I was kind of nervous and it was difficult to concentrate with all of those people out there.

?I guess I wasn?t taking off very well. My run-up . . . I felt I had to stretch a little, and I wasn?t driving through.

?But it was fun, I?d still like to try for the Olympics in two years.?

Later today, Michael Donawa steps out for his first appearance in a major Games when he competes in the 800 metres heats but with one of the slowest qualifying times in the field, 1:52.06, he?ll be hard-pressed to advance.

High jumpers Latroya Darrell and Zindzi Swan will be the last of Bermuda?s track and field contingent to compete when they take part in tomorrow?s straight final.

Earlier today small bore rifle shooter Ross Roberts failed to qualify for the final of men?s 50 metre prone.

Needing to place in the top eight to make the final, Roberts finished 34th out of the 37 starters with a score of 567.

Welshman David Phelps led the qualifiers with 596.

It wasn?t immediately clear why Bermuda?s other small bore shooter, Sinclair Raynor, wasn?t in the field.

Yesterday was a busy day for the Island?s other two shooters, Nelson Simons and Walter Trott, as they competed in two sessions of the full bore event at the Wellsford Range in Bendigo.

Simons fared better of the two, placing 33rd in a field of 38 with scores of 96.08 and 137.06 for a 233.14 total. Trott finished 37th with scores of 90.05 and 115.02 for a combined 205.07.

Meanwhile, squash players Nick Kyme and James Stout, seeded 11th among the 21 countries competing in men?s doubles ? an event rarely contested outside of the Commonwealth Games ? lost their opening match in Pool Two this morning, going down to the English second seeds Lee Beachill and Peter Nicol, two of the world?s top ranked singles players.

Beachill and Nicol won 9-3, 9-7, 9-5.

However, all is not lost for the Bermuda pair as they can still reach the second stage of the competition by beating their other two opponents in Pool Two, Zambia and Norfolk Island.

Kyme and Stout were scheduled to play Norfolk?s Duncan Gray and Gye Duncan later today and will complete their group matches against Zambia?s O?Neil Chilambwe and Lazarus Chilufya tomorrow.