A commitment to IAAF-sanctioned meets, a lack of funds and low Games standards were the conclusive factors in Bermuda Track and Field Association's (BTFA) stance not to send a contingent to the Island Games in June.

While other national sports organisations are preparing to ensure Bermuda is represented at the meet in Guernsey, BTFA president Judy Simmons has confirmed that no track and field athletes will compete there.

It's a decision which was made last year with good reasons, she explained, adding that adherence to the International Amateur Athletic Federation's (IAAF) regulations was the utmost consideration.

"Number one, we have a mandate from IAAF that most people who don't compete in the World Championships must compete in regional events and the Island Games are not a regional event. Also, we have CAC Senior Championships and the Pan-American Games both around the same time," she noted.

Another major issue was a lack of funds to finance a contingent to the meet.

"The BTFA has difficulty raising funds to go to events that we are mandated to go to by the IAAF and we just didn't see where the money would come from to go somewhere quite far away from Bermuda and to foot the cost associated with that trip.

"We made this very clear from the inception of the Island Games committee."

Simmons also pointed out that the Island Games' standards were well below the marks that Bermuda's athletes would be seeking to attain and were therefore of no competitive challenge.

"Some of the records that have been set since 1989 or 1993 are not even comparable for our senior athletes who are trying to get to Worlds or Commonwealth Games or even CAC Seniors.

"The records (in the 100 metres) are like 10.70 seconds for the men."

The athletics head also noted that, as a national governing body, the BTFA's mandate was to develop athletes for world competitions under the IAAF.

"Therefore nothing that they would get from the Island Games - other than competing against other people - would help prepare them for meets that would put them up where they need to be."