Dear Editor,
It is with dismay that I read your report in the Jamaica Observer that Dr Warren Blake, the President of the Jamaica Athletics Administrative Association (JAAA), had stated that there was no chance of Jason Morgan being selected as part of the Jamaican team to the World Championships in Moscow, next month.
I was also surprised at the arrogance and finality of the words expressed by Dr Blake. When one considers that Morgan is ranked eleventh in the world and that twelve persons go through to the final of a field event, it stands to reason that he has a very good chance of making the final; and as we know, once you make the final anything is possible.
When it is also noted that he is the only Jamaican now eligible to compete in the discus at the World Championships, one has got to ask why he is not being selected. Dr Blake says that the reasons given by Morgan for not attending the Trials were not sufficient for him to be included, and there is no case to be made for him.
But I would have thought that if you are a permanent resident of the United States and live there with your family and have been given a date for the swearing-in ceremony to become a citizen — the week of the Trials — and as a result you are without any travel documents because you had to turn in your green card before the ceremony,0 and your American passport would not be ready in time, then that would be reason enough.
And furthermore, Mr Morgan did advise the JAAA president, in writing, as to his situation, and is not just bringing this matter to their attention after the fact.
In the event that the JAAA thinks that their position is bolstered by the fact that Morgan has only attained the "B" standard — albeit that he has thrown 65.94m which is just 6 cm shy of the "A" standard Time for a rule-change, DPP — it should be noted that this event is not like the 100m in which there are hundreds of athletes who have attained the "A" standard. There is a present chance of advancing.
If you have the privilege to lead an organisation such as the JAAA, in which you have the responsibility to nurture the talents of the Jamaican people and to ensure that our best athletes represent us at the highest level, you will be faced with situations for which your manual does not have a ready solution. But that does not mean that the decision is a difficult one. I believe that leaders can be best judged not so much on how they handle the difficult situations, because mistakes will be made, but on how they handle the simple situations.
Stewart Spencer
stew@cwjamaica.com
Consider and hear, JAAA
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It is with dismay that I read your report in the Jamaica Observer that Dr Warren Blake, the President of the Jamaica Athletics Administrative Association (JAAA), had stated that there was no chance of Jason Morgan being selected as part of the Jamaican team to the World Championships in Moscow, next month.
I was also surprised at the arrogance and finality of the words expressed by Dr Blake. When one considers that Morgan is ranked eleventh in the world and that twelve persons go through to the final of a field event, it stands to reason that he has a very good chance of making the final; and as we know, once you make the final anything is possible.
When it is also noted that he is the only Jamaican now eligible to compete in the discus at the World Championships, one has got to ask why he is not being selected. Dr Blake says that the reasons given by Morgan for not attending the Trials were not sufficient for him to be included, and there is no case to be made for him.
But I would have thought that if you are a permanent resident of the United States and live there with your family and have been given a date for the swearing-in ceremony to become a citizen — the week of the Trials — and as a result you are without any travel documents because you had to turn in your green card before the ceremony,0 and your American passport would not be ready in time, then that would be reason enough.
And furthermore, Mr Morgan did advise the JAAA president, in writing, as to his situation, and is not just bringing this matter to their attention after the fact.
In the event that the JAAA thinks that their position is bolstered by the fact that Morgan has only attained the "B" standard — albeit that he has thrown 65.94m which is just 6 cm shy of the "A" standard Time for a rule-change, DPP — it should be noted that this event is not like the 100m in which there are hundreds of athletes who have attained the "A" standard. There is a present chance of advancing.
If you have the privilege to lead an organisation such as the JAAA, in which you have the responsibility to nurture the talents of the Jamaican people and to ensure that our best athletes represent us at the highest level, you will be faced with situations for which your manual does not have a ready solution. But that does not mean that the decision is a difficult one. I believe that leaders can be best judged not so much on how they handle the difficult situations, because mistakes will be made, but on how they handle the simple situations.
Stewart Spencer
stew@cwjamaica.com
Consider and hear, JAAA
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