SONIA O'SULLIVAN'S return to competition following her unexpected failure in the Olympic Games is likely to be at the Berlin Grand Prix meeting on August 30th.

O'Sullivan, who followed the action in last night's Grand Prix event at Zurich on television, is still entered for the meeting in Cologne tomorrow.

According to a spokesman for her agent, Kim McDonald, however, Cologne has already been deleted from her schedule and the chances of her running at Brussels, a week tomorrow, are only marginally better.

"Brussels has been mentioned for a possible comeback race but at this point, the meeting in Berlin looks the more likely bet," he said.

"Eventually it will depend on how well Sonia feels and if she is sufficiently recovered from her illness to handle top class competition.

"At her level, you don't just compete, you run to win and unless she feels strong enough to cope with that situation, she will stay off the track".

O'Sullivan, who is understood to. have received the results of medical tests she underwent in London last week, continues to train daily but the spokesman declined to comment on the amount of mileage involved.

Berlin is the last in the series of Golden Four meetings and while her prospects of sharing in the Gold Bars prize structure have now evaporated, the quality of the opposition there, would be certain to provide a searching test of her form.

Gary Ryan, the Nenagh sprinter who set a national 200 metres record in Atlanta, is discovering that in spite of the merit of two fine runs in the Olympic championship, invitations to the big meetings are still proving elusive.

Hopes that his Atlanta form would open some doors for him, have not as yet been fulfilled but a BLE official said yesterday that they would continue to facilitate him in his attempt to gain further international experience.

Susan Smith, another of those who achieved career best figures in the Olympic Games, runs in the 400 metres hurdles at Sheffield over the weekend but it is still not certain if TJ Kearns will be accommodated in the 110 metres hurdles event.