Maurice Wilson

Meanwhile, Tokyo Olympic 110m hurdles champion Hansle Parchment and Tokyo Olympics 400m finalist Stephenie-Ann McPherson have been named team captains as the athletes look forward to getting into action on Friday.

Of the 64-member team selected by the Jamaica Administrative Athletics Association to represent the country at the Championships set to run from July 15-24, quarter-miler Gregory Prince, 100m sprinter Jelani Walker, discus thrower Chad Wright as well as long jumper Chanice Porter and 800m runner Chris-Ann Gordon-Powell have not yet arrived in the athletes’ village.

Media liaison Dennis Gordon revealed that Prince received his US visa on Tuesday and is expected to arrive in Oregon by either late Wednesday night or early Thursday morning.

Walker’s situation is more concerning as the athlete has tested positive for Covid-19 and has been advised to remain away from the camp until he is advised by the medical team.

Chad Wright, Gordon explained, will not be joining the team because of “visa issues”.

As it relates to Porter and Gordon-Powell, the team’s technical leader, Maurice Wilson, at the request of their agent Claude Bryan, has granted permission both to join the camp on July 15.

Otherwise, Gordon said, all the other athletes are in camp and are said to be in high spirits ahead of the start of the competition, welcome news against the background of some challenges the delegation faced over the past few days.

Flight cancellations delayed the arrival of some athletes to the pre-camp late last week before the athletes moved into the village on July 10.

There were also issues with delays in accrediting some athletes because of matters relating to their Covid-19 status, Gordon confirmed.

He explained that some of the athletes faced issues with uploading forms issued electronically by World Athletics, that required information on athletes’ vaccination status. This was confirmed by some coaches who spoke with Sportsmax.TV earlier this week.

However, that matter has now been resolved and all athletes have now been accredited, Gordon said.

Another relatively minor issue that athletes faced was with the rooms to which they were assigned. Gordon explained that a list was created assigning athletes to specific rooms.

However, some of the athletes had preferences about whom they wanted to room with and as such when some athletes reported to the rooms to which they were assigned, they found there was another athlete already occupying what should have been their space.

That situation has also now been resolved, Gordon assured.

Several athletes who spoke with Sportsmax.TV confirmed that they are now settled.

 “For the most part, people seem to be okay. I haven’t heard any complaints really,” one athlete, who wanted to remain unidentified said.

“The rooms are dorms, and that was expected seeing that we are on a campus.”

Jamaica’s men 400m runners will be among the first to get into action on Friday morning in the 4x400m heats after which the preliminary round of the men’s 100m will get underway.

The heats of the men’s 100m will get underway in the afternoon session on Friday with the mixed relays finals scheduled to close out the day.

Neufville was found dead on Monday morning, in an open lot in Portmore, St Catherine, alongside a female passenger.  The athletics coach was 38 years old.

Up to the time of his death, Neufville had worked as part of the successful Calabar high school program and the newly formed Legacy Track Club.  Neufville was, however, also involved with the national team and was part of the Jamaican delegation that participated at the Pan American Under 20 Athletics Championships in Puerto Rico in 2019.

“He became a part of that cadre of coaches that would have travelled with the junior teams over the years and there were great expectations for him moving forward,” Wilson told TVJ Sports.

“He was one of the best coaches in both the long and triple jump.  He coached at the high school level, but his skills and skillsets could have taken him anywhere,” he added.

Before going on to be part of the multi-title winning Calabar high school team, Neufville had previously represented the corporate area high school.

“They will all get the same treatment, not just the medalists,” Minister Grange said as she welcomed home Candice McLeod, Demish Gaye, Sean Bailey and Tovea Jenkins earlier this week. She also welcomed back President of the Jamaica Olympic Association (JOA) Christopher Samuda, Head Coach Maurice Wilson and several other coaches and team manager Ludlow Watts.

In welcoming home the contingent, the Minister promised that greater assistance for the country’s athletes was in the pipeline.

“The Government realizes that it is not easy for all the athletes. Some of them come from really humble backgrounds and challenging situations,” she said of the team that won nine medals at the Tokyo 2020 Games, including four gold medals, one silver and four bronze medals.

“I am repeating this, do not to hesitate in letting me know what help you need. I may not be able to do all but I will certainly help as much as I can. I am here for you, whatever the ups and downs, we will face them together going forward. I am saying to the JOA here today that we must work together as a family.”

Minister Grange emphasized that whatever the differences that exist among organizations in the sector, “It is important that we come together from now because over the next three years we will be faced with major international meets, the World Games in Eugene, Oregon in the United States in 2022, the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, England, also in 2022, culminating with the Paris Olympics in 2024. Around the corner is the World Athletics Under-20 Championships in Nairobi, Kenya from August 17 to 21.”

The sports minister said she was impressed by the youthfulness, manners and humility that characterized the delegation that went to the Tokyo Olympics. “I got a response in return for every message that I Whatsapped to every one of them who I reached out to,” she said.

Tracey caused a stir on social media on Thursday when he uploaded a 15-minute video on YouTube accusing Wilson of “bias” and “favoritism” after it was found that Kadrian Goldson, a sprinter who attends the GC Foster College where Wilson is principal, was on the team and selected to compete in the heats of the 4x100m relay despite not qualifying for the team through the National Championships.

At those championships, Tracey was fifth in the men’s 100m final while Goldson was seventh. The usual protocol is that the top six finishers from the championships make up the relay pool.

In the video, the sprinter also claimed that Wilson has had a pattern of doing this while also calling him "a very evil and vindictive person."

According to Tracey, after he raised the issue with reporters in Budapest, he was contacted by Security Liaison Officer Steve McGregor and told his accreditation to the championships would be withdrawn and he would be asked to leave the team village.

“The utterances were libelous and defamatory,” Wilson said of Tracey’s allegations on Thursday night.

“My family is coming under attack on social media. The posts are out there. There is no way I will not have to seek redress in reference to my reputation. Track and field is a part of what I do. I’m also involved with youngsters that I mentor and try to assist so there is no way that I can allow this to just be a passing fire,” said Wilson, who is also head coach at the GC Foster College-based Sprintec Track Club.

“I’ve seen these things happen before. Tyquendo Tracey has been disrespectful before to management. He has made allegations on social media before about his former coach Stephen Francis so this is his modus operandi. It is very difficult for me not to seek some form of redress. This has to do with my reputation.”