Bekele ban raises fears over place at Olympics

Olympic distance-running great Kenenisa Bekele has been suspended by the Ethiopian Athletics Federation for not reporting to a training camp, in a move that could potentially keep him out of the London Games.

Bekele, winner of the 5,000 and 10,000 metres at the Beijing Olympics, was among 35 Ethiopian athletes suspended. The group also includes Tirunesh Dibaba, winner of the 5,000 and 10,000 women’s titles in Beijing, and her husband, Sileshi Sihine – a two-time Olympic silver medallist in the 10,000.

Federation president Bisrat Gashawten Tirfe said last night the suspension would be lifted if the athletes report for a future camp. “They have to come to terms accordingly,” she said.

Bekele’s agent, Jos Hermens, claimed the federation is grandstanding after a bad showing at the World Championships in Daegu, South Korea last August and played down fears the runner would miss the Olympics.

“Of course, Kenenisa Bekele will be at the Olympics,” Hermens said.

However, it emerged yesterday that the federation “has decided any international competition including Dubai Marathon is closed from January 20, 2012 until end of the (Olympic) event on August 2012” for the 35 athletes who did not attend the camp early this month.

Tirfe said a suspension was decided upon because the athletes ignored the federation’s request to attend the training. However, when pressed whether they would be allowed into the Olympics if they reported back for training, she answered “yes, of course.”

Ethiopia’s standing in long-distance running has waned in recent years, especially compared to neighbour and fierce rival Kenya. In Daegu, Kenya won seven gold medals compared to just one for Ethiopia. Kenya was third in the overall medals tables with 17, compared to Ethiopia in ninth place with just five.

Bekele struggled all last year with injuries and dropped out of the 10,000 metre in Daegu. He also slumped to 11th place in the Bupa Great Edinburgh Cross Country in Holyrood Park earlier this month.

However, the problem goes deeper than that. Even if Ethiopia has been fortunate to have top stars like Bekele, Dibaba and Haile Gebrselassie, it has nowhere the strength in depth that Kenya has.

With the London Olympics just over six months away, the pressure in now on Ethiopia to turn the tables. “They got into a panic after the many losses at the world championships,” said Hermens, who is the agent for both Bekele and Gebrselassie, a two-time Olympic 10,000-metre champion.

Hermens later said Bekele called him to complain about a “lack of respect,” and even inquired about the possibility of running for another country.

Hermens said Gebrselassie, as the veteran champion, would seek to find a diplomatic solution for both sides. “Haile has influence,” he said.

Mark Wetmore, the agent for Dibaba, said that “reasonable people will find a solution for this.”