TIS Robinson is a surprise package amongst a trio of athletes from Bermuda's road running scene that spectators should keep an eye on during International Race Weekend, which starts this evening with the Front Street Mile races.

International cross-country runner Albert 'Jay' Donawa and Fairmont-to-Fairmont women's champion Victoria Fiddick need little introduction, but talented club-level athlete Robinson is one of the few aiming to do the triple.

For not only will he appear in the Front Street Mile race on Friday, he aims to run the 10K the following day and complete his weekend by running the full marathon distance on Sunday.

The marathon will be one of his last ? if not the final outing at the distance ? but it could be an impressive swan song at the classic 26.2 mile event as he goes into Race Weekend in the best form of his life.

On route to an impressive fifth place in last Sunday's Fairmont-to-Fairmont 7.2 mile race Robinson set personal best times for 5K and five miles of 17:30 and 29:55 respectively. During the past few seasons his race performances have improved strikingly through a combination of effective coaching and staying injury free.

This is the first year he has qualified to run the Front Street Mile after posting a time of 5:13 at the trials in December at the National Sports Centre, earning himself a place in the event as one of Bermuda's fastest 20 residents.

"I've always wanted to do the Front Street Mile. This is the first year that I have not been injured. I want to do the marathon because I may give it up after this year and concentrate on shorter races," he said.

Working with respected track coach Steve Burgess has built up his leg speed, and steering clear of injury and taking part in a number of overseas races during the past year have all added to his growing ability, which he employed to devastating effect in the Fairmont race.

A monsoon-like downpour that partially flooded the roads during last Sunday's event proved of little hindrance to Robinson, although his slightly over-enthusiastic start took him through the first mile in a time of 5:30. He wisely adjusted his pace and satisfyingly set split-time PBs at 5K and five miles before finishing in 44:49.

Planning his build-up to this weekend he intended to do a few easy sessions, some sharpening speed work on Wednesday and Thursday before commencing his weekend triple race schedule.

A trick he has picked up from studying women's marathon world record holder Paula Radcliffe is to take an ice-bath between hard sessions in order to relax his muscles. He intends to do so on Saturday night to recover from his 10K exertions before tackling Sunday's marathon. Fairmont-to-Fairmont winners Donawa and Fiddick each have two races in mind this weekend.

First in action will be Fiddick, who qualified as the fastest women on the island in this year's Front Street Mile time trials. But her time of 5:40.7 was only two-tenths of a second quicker than rival Chantal MacIsaac ? who remains a largely unknown quantity to Fiddick.

Still running long training sessions to build up her base conditioning for overseas 5K and 10K races in the summer, Fiddick believes the mile race could go to any one of a number of athletes.

There is the aforementioned MacIsaac and the ever-competitive Anna Eatherley and Joanne Shillington who were all sub-six minute qualifiers in December.

Fiddick said: "It is not a given for anyone. It will be tough. I'm always slower on the night than on the track. I don't think I have yet proven what I can do at the mile." This year she has opted to run the half-marathon as her second event of the weekend rather than the 10K because her training schedule is still at the stamina-building stage.

"I'm doing steady base training and I'm feeling a little laid over going into each training session ? a little tired. But I have to go through it," she said.

"The half marathon will be my long run for the week. With the quality of the international runners in the women's race I haven't got a chance of winning, and there is Karen Bordage now competing on the local scene who has five or six minutes on me." However, during last week's Fairmont Hotels race Fiddick was an untroubled winner, enjoying the rainy conditions and finishing 20th overall in the race field of 162 finishers with a time of 47:29 ? two minutes clear of her nearest rival.

Bermuda's 2004 IAAF World Cross Country competitor Donawa carved out an even more impressive three-minute winning cushion over triathlon twins Evan and Rian Naude as he chalked up his seventh win in the Fairmont-to-Fairmont race.

Speaking after the race he said: "I just took off. My goal was to separate myself from the others early and I was trying to preserve myself for International Race Weekend.

"But after three miles it was raining so hard and with the wind too it blew my race strategy away. I had to run harder because I wanted to preserve my winning streak." Having come close to setting a lifetime best in November's BFTA half marathon when he ran 1:11:01, Donawa is enjoying the kind of form that should bring him a hoped for call-up to the 2006 World Cross Country Championships in Japan.

This weekend he will run in Saturday's 10K and Sunday's half marathon. His intention during the week was to get "as much rest as possible" before seeking to push himself as hard as possible against his elite overseas rivals.