Seville's agent denies rift with JAAA after World Relays withdrawal

Norman Peart, the agent representing reigning 100m world champion Oblique Seville, has knocked down speculation that his client has fallen out with the Jamaica Athletics Administrative Association (JAAA) over the sprinter's late withdrawal from the national team set to compete at this weekend's World Athletics Relays in Gaborone, Botswana.

Word broke on Sunday that both Seville and Olympic and World Championships silver medallist Kishane Thompson would skip the trip to Africa for the two-day meet beginning Saturday, even though both had been listed as headline names in the men's 4x100m relay pool. Jamaica is chasing an automatic ticket to next year's World Athletics Championships in Beijing.

Thompson's absence is reportedly down to an injury. A separate report that emerged Monday suggested Seville was kept off the plane because of travel arrangements, alleging the JAAA refused to foot the bill for a shorter route into Botswana.

The Jamaica Observer attempted to reach JAAA President Garth Gayle for a response, but calls were not picked up by press time.

In a statement issued Monday, the JAAA pushed back hard against the report, branding it "factually inaccurate". According to the federation, the real sticking point was the earliest date on which Seville could fly back to Miami from Botswana to honour a contractual commitment.

The JAAA said it advised Peart that the soonest available return flight would land Seville in Miami after 12:00 pm next Tuesday, with no guarantee of anything quicker. Following those exchanges, the body said Peart wrote to them last Tuesday confirming Seville's withdrawal and offering best wishes to the squad heading to Botswana. The JAAA added that it "look forward to his future participation as a member of the national team".

Speaking to the Observer, Peart confirmed the JAAA's account and said his charge is gutted to be missing the assignment.

"We had some challenges; we really worked hard to get this done but it couldn't happen. The logistics coming out of Botswana just could not work. We've been at it for a while but it just couldn't work," he said.

Peart was firm that there is no bad blood between Seville and the federation, calling the situation simply unfortunate.

"We had our challenges but I must say the JAAA really went out of their way to see [if it could be resolved], but the timing and the whole logistics of getting back from Botswana is very challenging and could not work out because he had to get back to the United States — and it's [something] he cannot miss," he added.

Seville, who claimed his maiden 100m world crown at the Tokyo World Championships last year, has never raced at a World Relays. He did, however, help Jamaica book a place at the World Championships through last summer's London Diamond League, after the team failed to finish either of its races at the previous World Relays. He was also part of the sprint relay outfit that crashed out of the Tokyo World Championships medal hunt after a baton drop in the heats.

The JAAA has yet to confirm whether replacements will be named for Seville and Thompson. Ackeem Blake, Rohan Watson and Kadrian Goldson remain among the 100m specialists in the relay pool.