Tyrone Smith, the Bermuda long jumper, will be the island’s lone representative at the World Championships in Athletics in London.

Donna Raynor, the Bermuda National Athletics Association president, admits she had hoped that more Bermudian athletes would have qualified for the biennial competition.

Raynor believes Smith is capable of a strong finish at the championships, to be held from August 1 to 3 at the London Stadium, but said he will have to be at his very best to challenge for the podium.

“My hope is that Tyrone can make it to the finals and that will give him a good chance of getting on the podium,” Raynor said. “But he will be up against the greatest long jumpers in the world, so he will have to jump his very best.

“I’m sure the championships are going to be fantastic as they will be the last for Usain Bolt and Mo Farah. With the championships being held in the same stadium as the 2012 Olympics, I have no doubt it’s going to be fantastic.”

Smith rediscovered some timely form when he leapt 8.06 metres at the Bermuda Invitational Permit Meet at the National Stadium this month.

He qualified for the championships when he produced a winning leap of 8.34 at the Tom Tellez Invitational Meet at the University of Houston in May before suffering a dip in form at a trio of European meets.

Smith was joined by sprinter Tre Houston at the previous championships in Beijing two years ago. Smith finished tenth after qualifying for the final with a jump of 8.02, while Houston posted a time of 20.92sec in his 200 heat.

Raynor will attend the two-day IAAF World Congress in London, which will include an election for positions on the Race Walking Committee.

“There has been a new format put in place for this year’s Congress, with one of the changes being with a number of sessions being offered with panels and speakers,” Raynor said. “I have been invited to sit on a panel with the topic being, ‘Area Representation Around the World of Sport in 15 minutes’. I’m looking forward to that.”