Who said there were overseas athletes competing in track and field at these Games anyway? Let me tell you, I've been at Olympic Stadium every evening this week and, honestly, Carl Lewis and Mike Powell were the only competitors in the long jump...

And, believe me, they did hand out only one medal after the 400 metres final, to that nice young man, Michael Whatshisname ...

And, you're wrong, there really was only one 800 metre semi-final heat, the one which that old American codger, Johnny Gray won ...

OK, so I lie a little. But let's keep that our secret.

Millions of TV viewers will never know otherwise.

THE IBM computer system at these Olympics, designed to give up-to-the-minute results, schedules and summaries of every event, continues to frustrate those who depend on it most -- the 4,000-plus accredited journalists. With transportation a constant headache, many members of the media

31 So, who needs technology? have decided one venue a day is quite enough -- and rely entirely on the bank of computer screens dotted throughout every press sub-centre for their coverage of events elsewhere.

But faith in the system has rapidly dwindled.

According to the computer, Peter Bromby and Lee White's final race in the Star class was scheduled for 10 p.n. Tuesday night; and there was no mention of Bermuda equestrienne Suzie Dunkley in the dressage entry list until after the event had finished.

Sprinter Troy Douglas' biography, meanwhile, notes he has a best high jump of 2.14 metres.

So much for advanced technology.

ATLANTA'S highly-regarded daily, the Journal Constitution, spared no effort in providing comprehensive coverage of Saturday's morning Centennial Park bomb blast, despite the fact that the explosion occurred after 1 a.m., close to the newspaper's final deadline.

Practically the entire staff were raised from their beds and summoned to the scene of the blast -- among them Bermudian Susannah Vesey, a long-time staff reporter.

Formerly a sub-editor with The Royal Gazette , Vesey, who works on the newspaper's business and tourism desk, was among those who interviewed injured victims, police and witnesses for a series of stories which completely changed the face of the Constitution in a matter of a couple of hours.

THE high jump competition at these Games likely brought back fond memories for Bermuda's much-heralded but now retired Clarance (Nicky) Saunders.

Commonwealth gold medallist at Auckland in 1990, Saunders, who had to give up the sport because of a chronic knee injury, was close friends with many of those competing in Atlanta and would have no doubt relished the competition, described by some here as one of the best in Olympic history.

No fewer than 13 jumpers cleared the qualifying height of 2.28 metres -- the most ever in a single event -- and in a hotly-contested final world record holder Javier Sotomayor of Cuba could only manage 11th, albeit with an injured ankle. Gold went to American Charles Austin with an Olympic record of 2.39, silver to Poland's Artur Partyka (2.37) and bronze to Britain's Steve Smith (2.35).

Two of Saunders' biggest Commonwealth rivals, Troy Kemp of the Bahamas and Dalton Grant of Great Britain failed to make the Olympic final.

BACK at the 1994 Commonwealth Games in Victoria, Canada, I shared a taxi from the airport to the Games Village with a young Trinidadian, at school in California, who was about to compete in his first major international event.

He talked of his training, how he hoped to make the semi-finals, and how he couldn't wait to line up alongside the likes of Linford Christie, Donovan Bailey and the rest of the sprint superstars.

As he stepped out of the cab I asked his name. "Ato Bolden,'' he smiled confidently, "one day you'll remember it.'' After Sunday's dramatic 100 metre Olympic final, it's a name many more will remember.

ADRIAN ROBSON