Bermudian sprinter Xavier James produced a stunning burst to win his 100 metres heat and go under the established Olympic `A' qualifying time of 10.2 seconds at the Arizona High Series in Flagstaff, Arizona yesterday.

His clocking of 10.19 was faster than the the long-standing Bermuda record of 10.28 set by Cal Dill back in 1977.

But there was one major problem -- the time was wind aided meaning that it will not count towards the 24-year-old's bid to qualify for this summer's Games in Sydney, Australia or be ratified as a new Bermuda record.

Still, that did little to deter an exuberant James, who was `over the moon' regarding his performance at the meet organised by a Canadian athletics body and involving several leading American runners.

"A 10.19 baby...the Kid was rolling,'' said James, who was to run the 200 late last night. "I was like gunshot fire out there, nobody could touch me.'' James, who had had difficulty combining all phases of the race, encountered no such problems during the morning heat, bursting from the starting blocks, driving through the middle and accelerating through the tape.

"Everything was clicking today for me...it's just a matter of time before I qualify,'' he said. "This shows that I'm in shape and ready.'' Legendary track coach Brooks Johnson, who has taken James under his wing, expressed pleasure at the progress his charge has made, noting that the best was yet to come.

"He's done it now and now he'll do it without the wind,'' said Johnson, who has sent athletes to the Olympics over four decades. "He's a developing guy and hasn't had that many races, so he has to establish the confidence that he can do it.

"I'm very excited for him. He's been in shape to run these times for some time. The problem has been that he hasn't had the experience to know how to execute and has put too much pressure on himself to do these things.'' Former Bermuda Track and Field Association (BTFA) president Stan Douglas was similarly encouraged by the apparent `arrival' of James, supporting the claim that the sprinter would likely legally meet the mark set down by the IAAF.

"I think that he can qualify,'' said Douglas, a one time sprinter himself.

"The challenge for him is to qualify legally and then be able to focus on the various aspects of his race and gear himself to peak at the right time.'' Meanwhile, word regarding fellow local Devon Bean was not nearly so grand, with the 1996 Olympian believed to have clocked in the 10.6 region during another heat in yesterday's meet.

Bean was said to be in Flagstaff along with national coach Gerry Swan.

The nine-day meet is taking place at the campus of Northern Arizona University and is being hosted by the High Altitude Sports Training Complex and Athletics Canada.