'IT WASN'T US': Star sprinter Nkanata to miss 'moment in history' as AK points finger at NOCK
Athletics
By
JONATHAN KOMEN
| Aug 09, 2016
Athletics Kenya have denied any wrongdoing over decision by International Olympic Committee (IOC) to withdraw star sprinter Carvin Nkanata from Rio Olympics.
Nkanata, a US-based athlete competing in 200m, was ruled out of the Olympic Games due to documentation problems.
IOC ruled him out as ineligible to compete for Kenya since he does not have a Kenyan passport.
“Nkanata has been knocked out of the competition due to Rule 40 of the IOC, which requires one to have a valid passport of the country he is competing for,” Stephen Arap Soi, the Team Kenya Chief de Mission, said.
“AK should have known better when they were selecting Nkanata to compete in the Olympics. They should have ensured that he had a Kenyan passport as IOC cannot allow you to compete for a country when you don’t have their passport,” he said.
But Barnaba Korir, an executive member of AK and chairman of the Nairobi branch, blamed National Olympic Committee of Kenya (Nock) for the mess.
“Nock knew this. They are the ones who enter athletes for the Olympics. I am surprised at the manner in which they are changing goalposts now.
“We sent them (Nock) the list of all probable athletes for the Olympics in January. The list had passport numbers and I am surprised they can deny,” said Korir.
He went on: “This was not the first time Nock entered Nkanata in a major championship. They had him during the Commonwealth Games and there was no problem. We (AK) also entered him for the Beijing World Championships last year without a hitch.”
“In fact, it’s very clear in the form Nock filled when they provided information... the passport is ordinary and the place of issue is USA,” he said.
In January, AK wrote to Nock Chef de Mission concerning the accreditation.
“In preparation for the 2016 Rio Olympic Games, Athletics Kenya has put together an advance list of probable athletes who will represent Kenya for purposes of accreditation. We note that the accreditation process is ongoing and therefore we submit to you a list of the athletes to enable you start the accreditation process,” read the letter addressed to the Nock Secretary General.
The exclusion of Nkanata generated furious reaction across athletics circles, with 1992 Barcelona Olympic 800m silver medallist Nickson Kiprotich directing blame to Nock.
“It’s sad that such a young man will miss a moment of history in his career. I feel for him. But the problem is always with the way our federations deal with athletes,” said Kiprotich.