Bermuda athlete Tyrone Smith still harbours hopes of making the qualifying grade for the Beijing Games, although both he and fellow long jumper Arantxa King have already been given wild cards for next month's Olympics.

Smith says he's determined jump a personal best before heading off to China.

"Qualifying is still my number one priority for the Games," said Smith yesterday.

"When I enter the competition in Beijing, I want the confidence of knowing that I have earned my position due to my performances, not a wild card.

"I'm not going to Beijing for the experience. I'm going to make the finals and compete, not just be in the competition. There is a distinct difference."

The long jumper has recently competed in the CAC Senior Championships, placing third with a jump of 7.8 metres and earning a podium spot.

Next up for him will be European track meets where he hopes he can reach his qualification target.

"I felt quite good in Colombia (CACs)," Smith added. "The conditions were not the best at first due to a sudden rain delay. However, I felt that I was ready to jump far.

"In actuality, I did jump far but what has happened to me many times this season is those jumps were fouls.

"I am currently working on a European meet schedule set to kick off next week. These meets are meant to be tune-ups for the Games as my coach, Tom Tellez, will be there with me.

"From there we are hoping to fly directly to Beijing with a solid jump under my belt.

"I will take some time off before competition in Beijing as I do not compete in the qualifying round until August 16.

"But overall I am still very confident in my abilities and I feel that anything is still possible."

Also in action on the international scene recently were King and Tre' Houston who both competed at the World Junior Championships in Poland.

Houston did not advance to the semi-finals in any of his two events – the 100 metres in which he placed fifth in his heat and 200 metres in which he finished eighth.

King, however, has qualified for the long jump final, clearing 6.28 metres on her first attempt. The automatic qualifying standard was 6.25 metres.

Twelve jumpers will compete in tomorrow's final, while King was one of only four jumpers who actually achieved the automatic qualifying distance.