Sonia may run 800m at Santry

Sonia O'Sullivan is likely to channel her national championship challenge into the 800 metres event on her first track appearance of the season in this country, at the Morton Stadium, Santry, next weekend.

Revitalised by a splendid second place finish behind Gabriela Szabo in the 3,000 metres at Zurich last Friday, she may now switch to a distance at which she has already won a number of Irish titles. She hasn't, however, ruled out the possibility of doubling at 1,500 metres.

"It's a possibility but at this point, I'm planning to run in just one event - and that is likely to be the 800 metres," she said. "That will probably be of more benefit to my preparations for Sydney and it fits into my training programme."

This evening she will have her last heavy training session before the Olympics and, mindful of what happened at Crystal Palace 10 days ago in the aftermath of a similar programme, she will scarcely be over ambitious at Santry.

Since then, of course, she has been rehabilitated by that fine performance in Switzerland. "While I never doubted that my run in London was too bad to be true, it was still very reassuring to do so well in Zurich," she said.

"With the exception of one tactical error in hitting the front too early, I got nearly everything right in the race and it was good to feel so strong at the finish.

"It proved yet again how up and down the form has been in middle distance running this summer but, hopefully, I'm now going to be able to take it on from here." O'Sullivan's inclusion in the programme is good news for the organisers of the Santry meeting, who are hoping for a bumper crowd for the showpiece of the season.

Among those travelling from England are Sarah Reilly, who ran so well at Birmingham at the weekend, and her husband, Brendan, who hopes to prove his fitness after a recent injury. The necessity for selectors to nominate the Olympic squad ahead of the championships has devalued the occasion for Paul McBurney, the Belfast 400metre runner.

McBurney, whose 45.84 seconds makes him the fastest of the modern crop of Irish 400 metres athletes, has been excluded from the six runners from whom the 4 x 400 relay squad will be selected. And despite the fact he has only recently recovered from a back injury, he regards that decision as unjust.

"I've won three of my four races since returning to competition and I felt the least I deserved was the chance of proving my racing fitness in the championships," he said. "I've been told that part of the reason was that nominations had to be submitted early to the Olympic Council of Ireland. But surely, they could have left two places open until after next weekend.

"I want to make it clear that I've no gripe with the athletes who have been selected. My complaint is with those who selected the squad without waiting to see how people performed in the championships."

McBurney, who last year switched his allegiance to Ireland after being selected for Britain in the 1996 Games in Atlanta, recently beat Gar Ryan, one of those selected in the Sydney squad. Ryan, one of the more consistent home-based runners in recent years, deserves the chance of going to the Olympics but many feel the Northern athlete has been shabbily treated.