MISFIRES AT GIBSON RELAY 2012

Patrons of the 36th staging of the annual Gibson Relays were denied the chance of seeing national 400-metre record holder Jermaine Gonzales, Dwight Mullings, Allodin Fothergill and Jermaine Gayle compete in the mile relay on Saturday night because of a reported incident that is being investigated by the disciplinary panel of the Gibson Relays Committee.

It is being alleged that Gonzales, who just missed out on a medal at the IAAF World Athletics Championships in Daegu last August, and at least one other athlete got into a verbal confrontation with a female official in the call room prior to the mile relay on Saturday night that resulted in the athlete and some of his teammates not being allowed to compete. Professor Rainford Wilks, Chairman of the Gibson Relays Committee reveals that the allegation is only still an allegation but should there be any validity to the claim being made against the national record holder who is a member of the Racers Track Club, sanctions could extend to the club itself.

Apparently Gonzales and some of his teammates were not being allowed to take their bags and sweats into the stadium. The athletes felt otherwise and have the experience to back up whatever fears they have had about leaving their belongings behind. Last year, when they did comply with the regulations governing the meet, they returned to retrieve their belongings only to find that they had been robbed of their mobile phones and other valuables. Professor Wilks explained that allowing the athletes to take their belongings with them would represent a breach of the rules, and in that context he would be right but there is something else that should be taken into consideration.

Gonzales and his teammates are international, professional athletes. These are the people patrons pay to see. It is this connection between the athletes and their fans that has made meets like Gibson Relays a success over the years. Surely, an exception could have been made especially given the athletes’ previous experience. Yes, the official has to obey the rules, but a little bit of flexibility would have allowed fans to see some of their favorite athletes and added value to a meet that lacked a little bit of oomph this year.

What is even more critical, Gonzales and his teammates ares preparing for the Olympics this summer. The evening was cool so they may have even been concerned about picking up injuries, justifying their concerns about not being able to stay ‘warm’ prior to the start of their relay. Getting hurt now would not be in their best interest as the Olympic trials are just about four months away.

That lack of on-the-track impact was also a result of very faulty announcing at the meet. In previous years, the hype at Gibson has been helped by the announcers drawing attention to the star athletes that are on show. In the sprint relays for clubs and institutions athletes like 2005 World Championship 100-metre silver medalist Michael Frater; and his MVP teammate Nesta Carter, the fourth fastest man of all time and a member of Jamaica’s world record setting sprint relay team were participating and yet hardly anyone was aware. If you are seated in the Grand Stand, it is often very difficult to see way across the field to identify which athletes are competing on the back stretch of the sprints and it would have helped greatly if the announcers alerted the fans as to who they were seeing over there. As it turned out a lot of the energy that is generated during a clash between some of the world’s best athletes running for rival clubs, was missing.

Similarly in the female mile relay, a team that consisted of Ristanana Tracey and Rosemarie Whyte ran almost anonymous and as a result there was no energy while the race was in progress.

At track side earlier in the day the officials were protesting the fact that they did not have refreshment available during what was a very hot and sunny day. Their actions delayed the meet for about 30 minutes and which ended up with the meeting running late. Professor Wilks described their actions as unfortunate.

It was an inauspicious start for Professor Wilks as chairman but one that he will surely learn from doing forward. The Gibson Relays are too important an event on the Jamaican calendar for him not to.