mapped out yesterday by Bermuda Track and Field Association as they confirmed both Bermuda teams as well as the course which will take in all 18 holes of the golf course.

The men's team will be led by the in-form Tracy Wright and will also include Mike Watson, Winton Woodley, Harry Patchett, Roger Dill and Jamal Hart, with the first four finishers to count in the scoring.

In Jennifer Fisher's absence, the women will be led by Donna Watson and Julia Hawley, from last year's team, as well as Melanie Claude and Sherrie Wade. The first three women will count in the scoring.

Points will be awarded to each team member, the number of points corresponding with the order of finish. The team with the lowest points aggregate will be declared overall winners.

A total of 80 competitors from eight nations will be taking part in the Championships, being held in Bermuda for the second time since the early 1980s.

Teams will be arriving from Mexico, the defending men's and women's champions, as well as other favourites Puerto Rico and Jamaica. Also confirmed are Aruba, Bahamas, the Netherland Antilles and the Cayman Islands. The overseas teams will begin arriving tomorrow and will be staying at the host hotel, as will the Bermuda team.

Organisers said they expected the new course to provide a challenge for the runners, with another key factor being the weather.

"Maybe if the weather continues the way it has been over the past few weeks, it might be to our favour,'' said national coach Gerry Swan yesterday.

"In fact I just mentioned to Mr. Swan that I would like to have the weather the way it is today so that we can chill the legs of our neighbours,'' President Stanley Douglas put in.

"What's really at stake here is that for the first time the IAAF has supported our region to the extent that the first two male teams in this event will be supported, totally, from their home country to the World Cross Country Championships in Durham, Great Britain in March,'' Douglas explained.

"That is another drawing power. I've talked to Puerto Rico at least three times a week because they see this as an opportunity for them. They just missed out last year when we had the first place team going to the World Championships being supported by the IAAF.

"So there's an extra carrot in there to perform well. We're hoping to at least be able to challenge. We're going out there with the best possible team available.'' A total of eight men and six women have trained with the Bermuda squad over the last two weeks, with Calvin Steede and Ed Harris and Jeana Jones and Georgia Belboda named as reserves for the two teams.

The course will be split into two sections, northern and western, separated by Middle Road.

The men's course is 11.3K (about seven miles) and the women's 5K (about three miles), both starting and finishing just below the ninth green.

The championships will begin at 8.30 a.m. with the women's race, and the men will follow at its completion at about 9.00 or 9.15.

TEAMWORK -- Tracy Wright (left) and Mike Watson will both represent Bermuda in Saturday's CAC cross country at Belmont.