Dage Minors is adamant he still has high expectations for the Central American and Caribbean Games despite an interrupted preparation.

The 27-year-old middle-distance runner is part of a three-athlete squad, alongside triple jumper Jah-Nhai Perinchief and sprinter Caitlyn Bobb, representing Bermuda on the track in El Salvador.

While the build-up to the Games has been far from ideal after he was forced to overcome a niggling knee injury, Minors remains in high spirits ahead of taking to the start line in the 1,500 metres tomorrow.

“My expectations going into the Games are what they always are with any event,” he said.

“I’m looking to compete to the best of my ability and represent myself, my family and country proudly.

“In championship races you never really know what to expect. Sometimes they can be tactical and others just go straight out fast. I have a plan that I would like to stick to regardless of the pace.

“Going in, I think I’m ranked with a lifetime best of fourth among the 11-man starting list and my season best puts me fifth, so putting myself in a position to compete in the mix is the first step for me.

“Myself, Jah-Nhai and Caitlyn all have high expectations of ourselves. For Jah-Nhai and I, this is what we do and for Caitlyn, who is at college still, this is a great experience for her.

“We’re all looking forward to competing against the best and hopefully we can achieve some strong results for everyone back home.”

Minors concedes his year has been frustrating with any attempt to build momentum, such as becoming the first Bermudian to run a mile in less than four minutes in January, halted by a number of small setbacks.

However, having withdrawn from the USATF Bermuda Grand Prix event in May, to focus on regaining full fitness, Minors believes he has already made up for lost time after clocking a season’s best time of 3min 46sec in recent weeks.

“This whole year has been a weird one because my training has been great and I started the year off by running the sub-four mile and then after that I just had a number of little setbacks that have knocked off any momentum,” he added.

“However, I’ve stuck with it and things like the small injuries now seem to be behind me which is a really good sign.

“I’ve been building back up my full fitness since early June and have competed twice in the past three weeks, which was a real positive.

“I managed to run a season best of 3:46 and how I ran it was the most pleasing thing; I would not necessarily say easy, but it felt controlled.

“Overall, this year has been far from perfect. I would have loved to have had a solid training block throughout May but I can’t complain too much.

“The knee injury definitely ruffled my feathers a bit, but it’s not the end of the world and I’m feeling good again now.”

Whatever happens over the coming days in El Salvador, Minors is determined to cherish every moment of the Games, conceding his appreciation at having the opportunity to represent Bermuda on the international stage grows stronger with every passing year in his seasoned career.

“It’s always a proud moment to represent Bermuda. As you get older, you definitely savour it more for sure,” he said.

“I’m not having any thoughts of packing it in just yet, but each time you go to an international, you always have that thought of could it be the last time you’re there.

“Representing Bermuda has allowed me to travel the world and compete in environments that I would never have been able to. I’m always incredibly proud to represent the island whenever I can.”