Continuing a remarkable season in international athletics, the 34-year-old Bermudian finished third yesterday in the lucrative Berlin Grand Prix with another scintillating time in the 200 metres. In a meet that saw Frankie Fredericks and middle-distance runners Gabriela Szabo and Hicham El Guerrouj share 20 kilos of gold, Douglas had his own reason to smile when he lost only to American star Jon Drummond and Greece's Georgious Panayotopoulos.

Last week, Douglas was also third in another elite meet in Brussels, setting a Bermuda record of 20.30 seconds. Remarkably, the old standard was a 20.41, set by Douglas in the Atlanta Olympics almost a year ago to the day. Yesterday, he couldn't quite match it but his clocking of 20.42 was till good enough to beat the likes of Olympic finalist Obadele Thompson of Barbados.

It was only a month ago that Douglas was knocked out of the semi-finals of the World Championships by virture of an unlucky draw: He was in a heat with Drummond, Fredericks and Ato Bolden. "For him to be running these times at this stage of his career is pretty astonishing,'' said Bermuda Track and Field Association spokesman Bob Oliver yesterday.

The consistent times will also likely translate into invitations to prestigious European meets in the fall, he said.

Yesterday, Fredericks won the 100 metres in 9.99 seconds after victories in Oslo, Zurich and Brussels. The 29-year-old Namibian, who won a share of the $200,000 prize last season with four wins in the 200, produced a typically strong finish to outsprint Canadian Olympic champion Donovan Bailey and American Tim Montgomery, who both clocked 10.05.

The gold bars are divided between athletes who win specific events at the four most lucrative meetings in the sport.

Romania's Szabo won her fourth race easily in the women's 5,000 in 14 minutes 44.35 seconds while Morocco's El Guerrouj shrugged off a brave challenge from 3,000 and 5,000 world record holder Daniel Komen of Kenya to take the men's mile in 3:45.64.

Fredericks not only left Berlin quite a lot richer but he also made up for a relatively disappointing campaign at the world championships earlier this month in Athens where he had to be content with a silver medal in the 200 metres.

"To have beaten the best sprinters in the world on four occasions means just as much to me as a world title,'' he said.

GOLDEN BOY -- A victory in the 100 metres yesterday in Berlin gave Frankie Fredericks a one-third share of a 20-kilo gold bar. Bermuda's Troy Douglas was third in the 200 metres at the meet.