Bermuda will take its largest ever Commonwealth Games squad to Malaysia early next month.

A team finalisation meeting on Wednesday saw Bermuda Olympic Association confirm 23 athletes in seven different sports and that figure was expected to swell following last night's high jump at the CAC Games in Venezuela where Ronan Kane was attempting to book his ticket.

Two pistol shooters -- Sinclair Raynor and Walter Trott -- currently competing in Canada, are also hoping to be added to the team by this weekend.

According to BOA secretary general John Hoskins the September 11-20 Games in Kuala Lumpur will mark the first time Bermuda has been represented in as many as seven different sports -- cycling, shooting, track and field, swimming, squash, gymnastics and bowling.

The latter three sports are all making their Commonwealth Games debut.

Following their acceptance, BOA president Austin Woods said he knew all along Bermuda would be sending a large contingent.

"The team is what we expected,'' he said. "And it might have been even larger as we expected to have some team sports represented but unfortunately none of ours qualified or opted to compete.'' One of those was cricket whose governing body, Bermuda Cricket Board of Control, declined an invitation to compete alongside England, Australia and several Carribean islands.

Two late additions confirmed on Wednesday were cyclists MacInnis Looby and Kris Hedges who only returned from Venezuela the previous day following Sunday's CAC Games road race.

They will give Bermuda a full cycling team at a major sports festival for the first time in several years, joining professional Elliott Hubbard and fellow amateur Steve Sterritt, who qualifies under residency regulations.

Looby and Hedges needed to finish in the top 25 percent of the field during Sunday's CAC Games road race and although placing 34th and 37th respectively in a field of 61, they were given the same time as all of those in the main pack behind the three medallists.

On that showing the BOA deemed them worthy of the trip to Malaysia.

Ironically in what is the biggest Games squad to travel overseas, track and field which previously has dominated Island contingents, may have one of its smallest teams.

As of last night only middle distance runner Terrance Armstrong was a definite with the BOA awaiting the results of high jumpers Ronan Kane and Rohaan Simons in Maracaibo.

Ireland-based Kane has already cleared the qualifying height of 2.12 metres but needed to prove to selectors he's on form, while Simons, who travelled to the last Commonwealth Games in Victoria, Canada, had yet to reach the standard.

Both Simons and Kane failed to reach the qualifying height last night (see story below) but it remains to be seen whether Kane will be picked on his previous performances this season.

A big question mark still hangs over triple jumper Brian Wellman following a knee injury which ruled him out of the CAC Games and forced him to withdraw from the upcoming World Cup in South Africa.

The former Indoor World champion is receiving intensive treatment at his US base in Arkansas but won't make up his mind about Malaysia until early next month.

Meanwhile, injury has also ended the dream of swimmer Ronald Cowen who was involved in a bike accident two months ago but who had hoped to recover in time for the Games.

However, in a special race on Monday evening this week Trevor Ferguson teamed up with Stephen Troake, Matthew Hammond and Stephen Fahy -- all of whom had already qualified in individual events -- to meet the 4x100 metres freestyle qualifying time and those four along with Alicia Mullan were given the green light by selectors on Wednesday.

The relay team needed to clock three minutes, 33.2 seconds and came home in 3:32.21.

In squash, Tommy Sherratt and Nick Kyme, who excelled at last week's World Junior Men's Championships in New Jersey, carry Bermuda's hopes while gymnasts Laura Murphy, Leila Wadson, Jenny Wright and Christina White join tenpin bowlers Conrad Lister, Antoine Jones, June Pitt and Dianne Ingham. All will be competing at the Games for the first time.

Rounding out the squad are shooters Carl Reid and Nelson Simons, who have again qualified in the small bore in which they competed in Victoria four years ago. They could be joined by full bore shooters Sinclair Raynor and Walter Trott.

GAMES SQUAD BOWLING Conrad Lister, Antoine Jones, June Pitt, Dianne Ingham CYCLING Elliot Hubbard, Steve Sterritt, MacInnis Looby, Kris Hedges GYMNASTICS Laura Murphy, Leila Wadson, Jenny Wright, Christina White SHOOTING Carl Reid, Nelson Simons, *Sinclair Raynor, *Walter Trott SQUASH Tommy Sherratt, Nick Kyme SWIMMING Alicia Mullan, Stephen Troake, Matthew Hammond, Stephen Fahy, Trevor Ferguson TRACK AND FIELD Terrance Armstrong, Brian Wellman, *Ronan Kane * subject to confirmation BERMUDA will be represented by seven sports at next month's Commonwealth Games. Among those travelling to Malaysia are (from top, left to right): squash player Nick Kyme, runner Terrance Armstrong, swimmer Stephen Fahy, (bottom) rifle shooter Nelson Simons, gymnast Laura Murphy and cyclist MacInnis Looby.