El Guerrouj, who shattered Noureddine Morceli's 1,500 metre record on Tuesday, just missed taking the Algerian's mile mark of three minutes, 44.39 seconds as he clocked 3:44.60 on still warm night on the Cote D'Azur.

The race was expected to be a showdown between the two north African middle distance maestros but Morceli withdrew just six hours before the start of the meeting with a pulled muscle in his right thigh.

On Tuesday in Rome, El Guerrouj took an incredible 1.37 seconds from 1,500m record set by Morceli on the Nice track last year.

The two men had already run the four fastest miles of all-time and El Guerrouj said he had come to Nice with his sights set on erasing Morceli's record.

"I was here for the world record," said the 23-year-old Moroccan, adding he will attempt themile record again later this month in Paris.

"Until 1,200m to go I was sure I had it but I was a little tired and couldn't do what I wanted. I'm not a machine. I can't run a record every time, I just try to run as fast as I can."

"World records don't come when you want them to, they come when God wants them to."

As in Rome, El Guerrouj, was led through the first two laps by pacemakers then did the rest on his own, finishing seven seconds clear of Kenya's Laban Rotich.

Aside from El Guerrouj, the meeting produced four other season best marks.

Cuba's world record holder Javier Sotomayor soared to a season best height of 2.34m to win the high jump from American Olympic champion Charles Austin, who was second with 2.30.

Kenya's Bernard Barmassai, the 3,000m steeplechase world record holder, ripped over seven seconds off the season's best performance clocking 8:01.53.

In the women's 3,000m, Morocco's Zahar Ouaziz was pushed to a season best time of 8:28.66 by Ireland's Sonia O'Sullivan.

The lankyO'Sullivan powered past Ouaziz entering the final turn but the diminutive Moroccan came back in the last 100 metres edging the double world cross-country champion, by 0.16 seconds.

American women's 400m hurdles world record holder Kim Batten also clocked a season best in 53.17.