Judy Oakes and Mike Winch, directors of the British Athletics Coaches Association, say the approach is just one of many issues for mentors across the UK
Coaches are “frustrated” and some have “had enough”, as a result of UK Athletics’ Olympic selection policy.
According to Judy Oakes and Mike Winch – directors of the British Athletics Coaches Association [BACA] – “more and more coaches have become dissatisfied with it” and that “they feel like they have no influence on the wider say [of decisions taken within the sport] at all”.
This comes after a letter was sent by Oakes and Winch to UKA, stating that “BACA has no hesitation in supporting our athletes and their coaches in seeking to accept the World Athletics invitations and will continue to support the inclusion of all qualified athletes in the team”.
Over the past few weeks, UKA’s strict selection policy has once again come under the spotlight after athletes who qualified via the World Athletics rankings were left out of the Olympic team because they hadn’t met the national governing body’s own standards.
Those standards, according to UKA, are “reflective of athletes making the top eight in their event”. The national governing body also argues that they don’t “turn down invites”, rather “national federations can select athletes through this route [world rankings] if they consider it appropriate to do so”.
A total of 64 names will represent Team GB in the athletics at Paris 2024. Overall, 327 British competitors were selected for this Olympics, the lowest number for all sports at a Games since Beijing 2008 (311).
Unlucky athletes who missed out for Paris included hammer throwers Jake Norris, Anna Purchase and Kenny Ikeji, discus thrower Jade Lally, shot putter Amelia Strickler, 5000m runners Hannah Nuttall, Verity Ockenden and Izzy Fry, plus 3000m steeplechaser Phil Norman.
Jade Lally (Getty)
Oakes and Winch, who both won medals for their country at multiple major championships, wanted to see all athletes who qualified via the world rankings selected for this Olympics.
“My viewpoint is that if you are good enough to qualify via the rankings from the global governing body to represent your country at an Olympics, then you should go,” Oakes says.
“These athletes’ places are then given to others who are actually ranked below them. Not only are they told they’re not good enough by the national governing body, World Athletics will just pick the next best person qualified on the rankings.”
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