Blake unhappy with visa hitch
THE late arrival of several Jamaican athletes for the pre-World Championship camp because of apparent visa issues, has not gone down well with the Jamaica Administrative Association’s (JAAA) president Dr Warren Blake.
“We made appropriate arrangements for all athletes. We had services in place locally with the embassies to fast-track our athletes,” Dr Blake told the Jamaica Observer.
He continued: “Letters were sent to respective embassies overseas to facilitate those overseas in consultation with those athletes and their management.”
“Any visa issues arose as a result of non-adherence to agreed protocols,” he noted.
The JAAA, courtesy of the Tottori Prefecture in Japan, started a 10-day training camp on August 8, but with half of the time elapsed, some athletes were yet to report for camp.
Defending 100m and 200m champions Usain Bolt of Racers and Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce and some of her MVP teammates were expected to arrive yesterday.
Bruce James, MVP president, whose athletes were in Italy, had explained that they could not acquire Chinese visas in Milan, hence their delay.
Meanwhile, Dr Blake pointed out that contrary to popular belief, the late inclusion of quarter-miler Ricardo Chambers had nothing to do with public pressure.
“Public perceptions did not figure. The manager made the request. Chambers was selected as no one heard from Edino and he has been removed from the team as a result,” Dr Blake explained.
“We would be foolhardy not to make provisions,” he added.
Chambers, who crossed the finish line in third spot at Jamaica’s Trials in May, but was later disqualified for a lane violation, was overlooked for the initial team.
However, he would go on to cop bronze at the North American, Central American and Caribbean Championships (NACAC) last week after running a season’s best of 44.93 seconds in the semi-final. That time made him the joint third-fastest Jamaican this season, hence calls in some quarters for his inclusion.
Chambers will now be a part of Jamaica’s 4x400m relay pool and he is grateful.
“I am glad the people supported me.
“I was kind of disappointed, but rules are the rules so I understood and accepted what happened and went back into training more determined,” said Chambers, who was on his way to Jamaica yesterday to acquire his Chinese visa.
— Howard Walker