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THREE track and field athletes have been added to the TT Olympic delegation for the Tokyo Games.
Sprinters Jonathan Farinha and Kai Selvon and shot putter Portious Warren were confirmed to have been included in TT’s now largest-ever Olympic contingent. This was announced in an online press conference hosted by the TT Olympic Committee (TTOC) on Tuesday.
Farinha and Selvon were added to the nation’s men’s 4x100m and women’s 4x100m relay teams while Warren contends the women’s shot put.
The men’s 4x100m relay team now comprises Farinha, three-time Olympic medallist Richard “Torpedo” Thompson, Kion Benjamin, Eric Harrison, Akanni Hislop and Adell Colthrust.
Additionally, Selvon joins veteran Kelly-Ann Baptiste, Michelle-Lee Ahye, Semoy Hackett, Khalifa St Fort and Ayla Stanisclaus in the women’s equivalent.
Additionally, Jereem Richards was included in the men’s 4x400m relay team. This squad is now made up of Richards, Deon Lendore, Machel Cedenio, Asa Guevara, Dwight St Hillaire and Che Lara. Richards however, will still compete in his pet event, men’s 200m.
TTOC president Brian Lewis commended the three athletes on their recent selection to TT’s Tokyo delegation.
But Lewis also took aim at the National Association of Athletics Administrations of TT (NAAA) president George Commissiong, who “broke procedure” by announcing the possible additions to the team during a live radio programme on Monday.
Any alterations to any Olympic team must be submitted to the TTOC first for ratification before being made public. Additionally, the TTOC is in charge of making any such announcements.
[caption id="attachment_899494" align="alignnone" width="850"] TT Olympic Committee president Brian Lewis - SUREASH CHOLAI[/caption]
“The announcement that is going to be made now was not made going through the TTOC process. Time was against us so we had to make the call and to thank the executive for the support in their decision that had to be made.
“The three athletes would be added and the adjustment for the 4x400m, the inclusion of Jereem Richards was done and confirmed by the TTOC. What guided and informed the decision, notwithstanding everything, was the commitment of the TTOC, who would have learnt its lesson,” Lewis said.
On Friday, the TTOC received its final list of Olympic-bound track and field athletes and officials from the NAAAs. Each relay team had five members.
The list was ratified by the TTOC and added to the overall national delegation. This list was officially released for publication by the TTOC on Saturday.
However, on Monday morning, the TTOC received an email from the NAAAs highlighting that Warren could be included in the Tokyo-bound team owing to another previously qualified foreign athlete pulling out of the games.
Included in the correspondence was the request to include Farinha and Selvon in the respective 4x100m relay teams.
Lewis said that initially, the sport entry guidelines (for relays) was five athletes with an option of including an additional sprinter.
“Overnight (Sunday night into Monday morning) the organisers wrote (to NAAAs) indicating that we can, in fact, enter six athletes to each of the relay teams. We are trying to now comply with that,” said Commissiong on the radio programme.
Lewis confirmed that there was always a place for an additional sprinter on each relay team and said it may have been overlooked due to Commissiong’s inexperience at the helm of national athletics.
He said this experience has now made the TTOC more rigorous regarding what necessary protocols, particularly the premature release of confidential information by administrators, should be beefed up.
“I don’t think that this would have happened if it weren’t for covid19. Maybe the interim president is struggling with a little bit of inexperience.
“It may not have happened if he had a little more experience. The process outlined by world athletics was pretty simple. I can’t see such an error being made again,” Lewis said.
With the inclusion of the three athletes at the last minute, Lewis said it “makes the logistics more complicated.”
Regarding the decision by the NAAAs to submit another list on Monday, Lewis directed all questions to Commissiong.
Lewis closed, “When we asked for justification and an explanation; what we received was a cut and paste of that aspects of the athletics manual so we had no choice but to go by that.
“The TTOC had to make a choice. Ultimately we’re the one that enters and confirms (athletes). The TTOC could easily have said ‘no’ and not approved the additions based on its concerns but that hasn’t happened.”
 
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