Campbell, Norman criticise UK Athletics after Paris Olympics snubs

Shot putter Amelia Campbell is considering retiring from athletics after being omitted from Britain’s Paris Olympics team, despite meeting the selection criteria set by World Athletics.

The 30-year-old, who won the British title last week, was among several British athletes provisionally listed as qualified due to their world rankings but not named in the team announced on Friday.

“I’m very much considering retirement,” Campbell said in an interview with Reuters. “I want to retire because there seems to be no point in me mentally and physically pushing myself to these limits, to be let down repeatedly.

“These are my seventh championships that I will have been denied. I made Tokyo (Olympic selection criteria) as well. It’s just a joke. It is a joke.”

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World Athletics created a two-pronged qualifying pathway, with selection decided first by meeting an Olympic standard and then by world ranking.

Campbell, whose career best throw is 18.18 metres, did not meet the Olympic standard of 18.80 metres, nor the standard of 18.67 set by UK Athletics that is based on a potential top-eight finish. She is ranked 38th in the world, but would have been eligible for the 32-thrower field as each country can only send three athletes.

Women’s discus thrower Jade Lally, men’s hammer throwers Kenneth Ikeji and Jake Norris and men’s steeplechaser Phil Norman were among British athletes who similarly hit the world ranking criteria but were not named to the team because of UK Athletics’ policy of declining invites where athletes have not met their standard.

On the “Athletics at the 2024 Summer Olympics-Qualification” Wikipedia page, they are all listed as qualified but with a line through their names as “rejected quota” spots.

Norman missed UK Athletics’ steeplechase standard by just 15 hundredths of a second.

“I battled every step of the way this year on and off the track and successfully qualified for my second Olympic games,” Norman said in a statement on social media. “However, due to UKA policy I was not selected and my invite to the Olympic Games will be declined.

“I fought tooth and nail with help of legal counsel and the UKA athletes commission to appeal this decision but unfortunately my appeal was rejected due to 0.15s over 3,000m.”

Norman won the British championships last week and broke a championship record that had stood since 1990.

“In the eyes of UKA I am not good enough,” he said. “Physically I am in the shape and form of my life. But mentally and emotionally I have nothing left to give.”

UK Athletics said that the World Athletics qualification system is not “a direct invitation to the athlete to take part,” in the Olympics.

“UKA’s view is that those athletes should only be selected on similar principles to those selected through the direct qualification standards, i.e., those who are capable of making top eight in their event,” a UKA spokesperson said in a statement.

“In selecting teams there will always be a line with some people unfortunately on the wrong side of it, and we do understand the disappointment of those who fall into this category.”

Campbell said it is particularly disappointing that Team GB has no female throwers considering the message that sends to girls and young women in the sport.

“I’ve had so many people message me and say, ‘My daughter’s a thrower and she’s so sad that there will be no female throwers, and she’s really wondering why she should continue to pursue it’,” Campbell said. “It’s honestly so sad to see that they just do not care.”

Reigning Olympic medallists Keely Hodgkinson (women’s 800 metres), Josh Kerr (men’s 1500m), Holly Bradshaw (women’s pole vault) and Laura Muir (women’s 1500m) headline Britain’s 48-member athletics team for Paris.

Katarina Johnson-Thompson was selected for her fourth Games in the women’s heptathlon, while 2022 world champion in the 1,500 Jake Wightman will race the men’s 800m, and world indoor pole vault champion Molly Caudery will compete at her debut Olympic Games.