Sonia O'Sullivan will today inform BLE officials which event she plans to run in at the National Track and Field Championships at Morton Stadium, Santry, next weekend.

O'Sullivan, who is in the United States for the Goodwill Games, declined to speculate on her plans yesterday but it is likely she will run in either the 800 or 1,500 metres.

Speed is of the essence at this point in her build-up to the European 5,000 metres championship at Budapest next month and a race at one of the shorter distances is likely to prove more valuable than a time trial over 5,000 metres. Three years ago she caused something of a surprise by confirming she would compete in the 800 metres, a distance at which she has long ceased to have international ambitions.

However, it remains an option this weekend. The more likely scenario is that she will take her place in the 1,500 metres where the opposition is likely to include Sinead Delahunty and Una English.

With the squad for the European Championships scheduled to be selected next Sunday evening, the number of overseas based athletes coming home for the national tests are significant. It should make for some sharp competition in the field events.

Roman Linscheid and Paddy McGrath are returning from the United States to face each other in the hammer; Nick Sweeney and John Menton will be in action in the discus and the presence of Terry McHugh, back from Switzerland, is guaranteed to generate some excitement in the javelin.

Apart from O'Sullivan, the big attraction on the track will be the Larne athlete James McIlroy whose startling rate of improvement in the 800 metres has done much to illuminate the opening half of the track season.

As yet, it is still not clear whether McIlroy will concentrate on the 800 or 1,500 metres but, either way, he promises to make waves. If he chooses the shorter distance it will bring him across the paths of David Matthews and James Nolan, both of whom are looking for an European nomination.

The 1,500 metres would offer the prospect of a meeting with Niall Bruton and Shane Healy, Olympians in Atlanta two years ago but now frantically in search of qualifying times for Budapest.

Sadly, but predictably, the Santry line-up will not include Catherina McKiernan, now firmly established as one of the top road runners in the world but destined, it seems, to make fewer and fewer appearances on the domestic circuit.

While the majority of her international team-mates were gearing up for the National Championships, she was in Amsterdam yesterday to confirm that her next marathon run will be in that city on November 1st.

Together with her coach, Joe Doonan, McKiernan confirmed that she will head the entry for the women's race, one of the more significant marathons on the road racing calendar.

It means that an interval of more than six months will have elapsed since her last marathon appearance in London, where she recorded a convincing win. Since then she has won a 10kilometre race in Dublin and a low key event on Sunday over a similar distance in Amsterdam. That stretches her sequence of wins to 16 since winning the corresponding event in June of last year. Details of the financial package on offer in Amsterdam were not available but, given her status as one of the top athletes in the world at the distance, her appearance fee is almost certain to run into six figures.

In agreeing to run in Amsterdam, McKiernan effectively rejected BLE's offer of a place in the team to compete in the European Championships. Some months ago BLE took a decision to pre-select her for all major championships but there were always reservations about her participation in the Europeans. The next big team event for which she is eligible, will be the World Cross Country Championship at Belfast next March. But, given that she is already committed to run the London marathon the following month, that, must now be in serious doubt.

Meanwhile, a seasonal best of 55.22 seconds earned Susan Smith fifth in the 400 metres hurdles in the first day of the Goodwill Games in New York on Sunday evening. Victory went to Olympic champion Deon Hemmings of Jamaica in 54.20, but Smith was well pleased with her performance in such a quality field.

"I was a little bit nervous coming up against all the top Americans and Jamaicans," said Smith. "The conditions also weren't ideal but this is definitely a step in the right direction."

With world record holder Kim Batten from the US in third and the other top Americans, LeTonya Sheffield and Sandra Glover, seventh and eighth, it was certainly a strong run from the Waterford athlete.

There was disappointment for Aoife Hearne when it was learned yesterday that her time of 11.85 seconds for 100 metres will not qualify her for the World Junior Championships which begin in Annecy, France, next week. Despite being selected in the original team, the official qualifying time of 10.84 meant Hearne had to be withdrawn by BLE.