Both overall defending individual champions will be on tomorrow's start line for Bank of Bermuda Triathlon which will see the individual and team events run side-by-side for the first time.

Karen Smith was originally thought to be skipping the race as she prepares for next month's Hawaii Ironman along with Karen Bordage and Julia Hawley.

But organisers confirmed yesterday she had registered along with men's champion Evan Naude.

Naude won last year's race with an impressive personal best of 59 minutes 42 seconds, while Smith's win was her seventh in the event.

There will be more competition this time around, however, with 84 adults opting to race in the individual event, up from 54 last year.

Whatever happens there will be new team winners this year, with last year's champions, Garth Thomson, Chris Estwanik and Eleanor Gardner not competing.

Estwanik is off the Island, while Thomson, who was recently selected to represent Bermuda at the Elite Caribbean Cycling Championships next month, hasdecided to work as a cycle marshal.

There are 55 teams entered for the sprint triathlon, while in the junior section there are 29 individual entries and 14 teams.

The juniors begin at 8.30 a.m. and the seniors at 9.30 a.m.