MT. SAC RELAYS: JONES WON'T GOLD FIGURE OLYMPIAN MAKES SEASON DEBUT, DISMISSED PREDICTIONS FOR ATHENS.

Byline: Kirby Lee Special to the Daily News

WALNUT - Marion Jones won't be proclaiming a bid for five gold medals in the 2004 Olympics in Athens as she did for the 2000 Olympics.

Jones, though, was far from reserved about her ambitions after her season debut Sunday, when she won the 400 meters in a world-leading 50.46 seconds at the Mt. San Antonio College Relays.

``I learned a good lesson that I am never going to make that mistake in 2004,'' Jones said about announcing her plans for gold medals in the 100, 200, long jump, and 400 and 1,600 relays in the 2000 Olympics.

``I am getting the same questions again about Athens. You're not going to get that out of me yet.''

In Sydney, Jones won gold medals in the 100, 200 and 1,600 relay in Sydney but finished third in the long jump and in the 400 relay. The Thousand Oaks High graduate left little room for speculation about a similar pursuit in Athens.

``You can pretty much do your math and get close,'' Jones said. ``You can bet I'll be in the 100 meters. You can bet I'll be in the 200 meters. I've told everyone that I have an eternal love for the 4-by-400-meter relay. I am getting back to the long jump to prepare for 2004.''

And the 400-meter relay? ``That's up to you guys to print,'' Jones said.

Jones, who ranks second on the all-time 100 and 200 lists behind Florence Griffith-Joyner, ruled out the open 400, but she didn't eliminate a quest for the American record of 48.83 before her career is through.

Or seeking redemption for a loss to Zhanna Pintusevich Block of the Ukraine in the 100 meters in the world championships in Edmonton that snapped Jones' string of 47 consecutive victories over four years.

``I am glad that somebody got a chance to win at the world championship because if it is up to me that will never happen again,'' Jones said. ``I am sure there are some athletes saying, `There she goes again. She thinks she is better than everybody else.' I am tired of hearing about what other athletes say about me. I am just going to go out there and run fast.''

Jones, who opened her season at Mt. SAC for the fifth consecutive year, clearly was the class of the field in the 400 on Sunday.

Her winning time of 50.46 was more than a second faster than LaDonna Antoine (51.65) and training partner LaTasha Collander-Richardson (51.72), who teamed with Jones on the victorious U.S. 1,600 relay in Sydney.

Jones, however, was well off her personal best of 49.59 in the 2000 Mt. SAC Relays.

``I have been doing a little more endurance work, and I wanted to run faster than that. I won the race and felt strong overall except for my usual tying up over the last 40 or 50 meters. I feel in as good a condition as I ever have.''

Jones' effort was among four world-leading marks at the 44th annual meet, along with Kenta Bell in the men's triple jump (57-10 1/4), Angela Williams of USC in the women's 100 (11.06) and Miesha McKelvy in the women's 100 hurdles (12.86).

In the men's triple jump, Bell moved into fourth on the all-time U.S. list and broke a 18-year-old meet and stadium record of 55-9 1/4 set by former world-record holder Willie Banks.

In the women's 100, Williams and Natasha Mayers finished first and second, respectively, in 11.06 and 11.08 and could give USC a boost in defense of its NCAA team title.

Williams, who is trying to become the first athlete, male or female, to win the 100 for four years in the NCAA championships, got out quickly to hold off Mayers, a junior-college transfer who will be eligible for the Pacific-10 championships.