A new winner of the KPMG Invitational Mile will be crowned next Friday night as defending champion David Freeman has been forced to withdraw.

The Puerto Rican has fallen ill and is unable to make the trip, as is last year's American runner-up John Rankin, who is injured.

It paves the way for 2007 champion Neal Speaight, who finished third in last year's Elite race, to reclaim his title.

The Englishman will be among the favourites in a field that so far has just seven confirmed entrants.

There are no local runners among that number and it is believed that top Bermuda athlete Lamont Marshall declined an invitation to compete in the event.

Marshall has been at loggerheads with race organisers in recent years after they continually refused him a place in the elite race despite his overwhelming dominance in the local males mile which he won last year by a massive 24 seconds.

Despite being invited this time around, a spokesman for the race said Marshall had opted out of the mile so he could concentrate on the following day's International 10K.

This year will also see an Elite Women's event for the first time with competitors coming from as far afield as Australia and the Ukraine to compete.

Confirmed entries as of yesterday:

Elite Men: James Thie (Wales), Ryan Woods (USA), Neal Speaight (England), Abraham Ng'Etich (Kenya), Abiot Endale (Ethiopia), Haron Lagat (Kenya), Oleksander Velychko (Ukraine)

Elite Women: Kenia Sinclair (Jamaica), Korene Hinds (Jamaica), Solome Kosgei (Kenya), Katerina Stetsenko (Ukraine), Leah Kiprono (Kenya), Kylie Edwards (Australia)

n As usual, the mile events will be held on Front Street, the first, for primary school girls, starting at 6.30 p.m.

That will be followed by the primary school boys, middle school girls and boys, high school girls and boys, local adult females and males and finally the Invited Elite females and males.