The meeting,  organised by UK Athletics, will take place on May 22-23 and is open to all National Paralympic Committees (NPCs) that have IPC licensed athletes.

The event is the first of three events in the UK Athletics 2010 Disability Athletics Challenge Series and will provide athletes with an early chance to meet the qualifying standards for the 2011 IPC Athletics World Championships which will be hosted by Christchurch, New Zealand, in January next year.

The meeting in Knowsley will be held at the Kirkby Sports College on a new high performance Mondo track which is the fastest surface currently used in track and field in the world.

Woods, who picked up silver in the T54 1500 metres and bronze in the T54 5,000m at the Beijing Paralympics, said: "I’m really excited about the Liverpool event and I think it’ll be a great meet.

"But the real beauty of it is we don’t have to travel too far to get to it.

"With three scheduled events in the UK over the summer we’re getting more opportunities to race against top opposition leading into major championships, which is brilliant. "

The 23-year-old, who won the 2007 London Marathon women’s wheelchair race, added: "This is a good venue with a fast track and it’s exciting for me because we’ve got some of the best girls in the world coming over to compete which raises the standard."

Bushell, the Beijing  T53 100m silver medallist and world record holder, said: "It’s really important to get experience of international competition in the UK and having benefited in Gateshead and Crystal Palace last year, it’s great to add in a third event for 2010.

"We usually have to travel abroad to get qualifying times but with the new Mondo track in Liverpool it should be fast, giving us a good chance to achieve those standards here."

Eddie Connor, Liverpool's Cabinet Member for Leisure, Community and Culture, said: "Knowsley is delighted to be hosting this major international disability athletics event which will see some of the sports leading stars compete.

"The specialist Mondo surface track at Kirkby Sport College should help to achieve fast qualifying times not just for the 2011 IPC World Championships in New Zealand, but also in preparation for London 2012.

"We are very much channelling our focus and energies in ensuring Knowsley benefits fully from the opportunities that 2012 offers and have a ‘Proud and Spirited’ programme to achieve this.

"The Council has recently invested over £25 million into new leisure facilities in the Borough so we now have a wealth of world class sport and leisure facilities for elite competitors and the local community to fully benefit from.

"Knowsley Leisure and Cultural Services have already been highlighted nationally for its innovative work through achieving the 2012 Inspire Mark with key developments aimed to inspire and sustain local participation into sport and cultural opportunities, and hosting events such as this will only help to inspire a new generation to participate."

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