A glance at the 1500 metres Commonwealth Games field quickly puts the challenge facing Bermuda's Terrance Armstrong into perspective.

Three Kenyans, three English and three Canadians all with times in the mid to low 3:30s.

They almost make Armstrong's personal best and national record of three minutes, 41.97 seconds, set just two months ago, look pedestrian which, of course, it's not.

The 26-year-old -- he turns 27 next month -- has improved steadily in recent years to a point where he's recognised as the best in Bermuda and one of the best on the US summer circuit.

But the Commonwealth, and not the US, has long ruled the roost at this kind of race, the Africans, in particular, dominating from 800 through to 10,000 metres.

And if their presence here is not daunting enough, then there's England's Tony Whiteman -- a former runner-up in the Front Street mile -- compatriots John Maycock and Kevin McKay as well as leading Canadian Kevin Sullivan to contend with.

But the big threat undoubtedly comes from Kenya. Daniel Komen, Laban Rotich and John Kibowen are men on a mission, having declared on their arrival they intend to attack the world record of 3:26.00 set by Morocco's Hicham El Guerroj back in July.

Even before the days of Sebastian Coe, Steve Ovett and company, the 1500 metres was considered one of the blue riband events of major Games. It's no different here in KL. The final has been scheduled as the last individual track event before Monday's closing ceremony, therefore guaranteeing a capacity crowd, and la creme de la creme of middle distance running will be on hand to do battle.

But before Armstrong can look forward to that, there's a small matter of qualfying.

Two heats on Sunday evening will decide the final field, the top five in each plus the two fastest finishers progressing.

Armstrong is under no illusion about the task at hand.

"Right now, going into the race I'm ranked about ninth or tenth,'' he says.

"I'm pretty much looking for a place in the final and I'm confident. But this is much tougher than CAC.'' At those Games in Venezuela just a month ago, the Bermudian could manage only 3:48.93, good for fourth place in the final.

But he believes he's much better than that result suggests and while his goal here is to again lower his personal best and national record, he recognises that might not happen in Sunday's heat.

"I'll have to be aware of things tactically,'' he adds. "I might need just to stay with the pack until the bell goes and then see what happens. I might not need a PB to qualify. It would be great to run a fast time but at this stage it's more important that I run tactically well enough to reach the final and then take it from there.

"I need to be in striking distance going into the last lap. I can't find myself at the back as I did in Venezuela, not with these guys. I have to be in the thick of things.'' Long term, Armstrong's looking towards the 2000 Sydney Olympics and says in that regard he's pleased with the way his times have come down.

"I just try to improve each year,'' he says. "I've had a great year this year, 3:41 was pretty good and I won't complain if I get another PB here. But next year's goal is to to run 3:38 or better and just take another stepping stone towards the Olympics.'' For teenage high jumper Ronan Kane, Bermuda's only other track and field representative at these Games, the goals are similar, although the Ireland-based university student concedes he's very much the new boy on the block.

There are, at least not at this stage of his career, no thoughts of emulating Nicky Saunders who snared Bermuda's first ever Commonwealth Games gold in Auckland in 1990.

For 18-year-old Kane, who skipped the first week of his university term in Dublin to fly to Malaysia, the goals are conservative.

His best jump so far has been 2.10 metres, achieved indoors both last year and this year, while outdoors his highest is 2.05.

"But the season in Ireland has been mixed up because of the weather,'' he explains. "So I guess my aim here is to try and make the top 10 which will probably mean jumping 2.15.

"Everything in training's been going pretty well. I'm just hoping I can put it all together on the day. The few attempts I've made at high heights in training have gone well.

"This is just good experience for me. I don't expect to get anywhere in the medals or anything like that. But hopefully I can watch other jumpers, see how they do things and improve my technique.'' Seventeen are entered in Saturday's straight final, Australia's Timothy Forsyth, England's Dalton Grant and Bahamian Troy Kemp considered the medal favourites. Kemp has cleared 2.38 and Forsyth and Grant both own PBs of 2.36.

Bermuda's squash pair Nick Kyme and Tommy Sherratt bowed out of the men's doubles yesterday on the wrong end of a thrilling encounter with Zambians Lazarous Chiluyfa and Patrick Chifunda.

In their final round robin match, following defeats by Australia and New Zealand a day earlier, the Island team went down 13-15, 14-17, narrowly failing to take the match to a third set.

SHOT OF THE DAY -- Judith Oakes won gold in the Commonwealth Games shot put yesterday at the age of 40 (More Games action, Page 17 .