National cycling coach and technical director of the T&T Cycling Federation Erin Hartwell has sought to clear the air on the inability of the local sprint team to qualify for this year’s Olympic Games in Tokyo Japan, by saying ‘this is not true.’
In an interview yesterday Hartwell made it clear the team is 562 points behind in the race but noted it is not impossible.
His comments came after cyclists Njisane Phillip and Kerron Bramble said they were pulling out of the team for the coming UCI Cycling World Cup in Canada from January 24-25, and the World Championship in Germany next month because they (the team) could not qualify for the Olympic Games again.
The duo has also said, they will be coaching themselves for the 2024 Olympics.
The two were part of the T&T sprint team that was stripped of the gold medal they won at the Pan American Games in Lima, Peru in August last year, after a member was tested positive for drug use. Because of this, Phillip was also stripped of his individual sprint silver medal.
Hartwell said on Wednesday, “There are some 1500 points available out there to be gained for some 10 to 11 teams, still pursuing one of eight spots at the Olympics. And for the World Championship, the points would be double.”
However, Hartwell faces a real predicament with Phillip out his team, a position that leaves him with the possibility of having one second-man rider and three third-leg cyclists in his team at the World Championship.
Quincy Alexander, who comes in the team as a replacement for Phillip, has been a third-man rider in the set-up, along with Kwesi Browne and Bramble, who was later converted to a first-man rider, as Hartwell sought to strengthen his unit in the sprints. “It will be challenging but by no means impossible,” Hartwell explained.
Only yesterday, David Francis, manager of the T&T team for the Canada World Cup said the T&T Cycling Federation was currently in the process of talking to Hartwell, to verify where the country’s sprint team stands and what is required to qualify.
Last week the TTCF selected a three-man team comprising of Nicholas Paul, Quincy Alexander and Kwesi Browne for the Canada World Cup and World Championships.
However, Hartwell made it clear the team selected was only for the Canada World Cup, as the team for the World Championship can only be submitted when the UCI gives the go-ahead.
Hartwell also told Guardian Media Sports that newspaper reports yesterday was when he found out that Bramble and Phillip had pulled out of the team. “As far as I am aware, an athlete retiring from the team must notify the cycling federation, who will then inform me.”
He later said the issue between him and Phillip, concerning the removal of cycling wheels and equipment, is being addressed by the federation.
