Allan Wells fears Scotland will be under-represented at the 2012 London Olympics
– Athletics news
Allan Wells, the legendary Scottish athlete who had been regarded as the fastest man of the country, has expressed his concerns over the fact that the nation was likely to have fewer track athletes at the 2012 London Olympics.
The former Olympic champion over the 100m at the Moscow’s Summer 1980 Olympics, feared the fact that his nation may not be able to produce results other than what had been displayed at the World Championships in Daegu. In this year’s global athletics event,
only the duo of Eilidh Child and Lee McConnell appeared on the track.
The former legendary performer was of the view that Scottish Athletics still had got a long way to go for producing elite athletes in the country. However, he expressed his consent over the athletics body’s street Sprint programme which could play a vital
role in surfacing talent.
The street sprint is the same project for which Wells had been practically helping out his old school in Edinburgh, the Liberton High school. The programme extends an opportunity for youngsters to participate in athletics events in evenings and on weekends.
The programme is currently being financed by the Scottish Government for which funds are raised from the proceeds of crime crippling activities.
While responding to a question regarding whether Scottish athletes will be able to make it to the London Olympics next year, Wells expressed his concerns and said, “It concerns me as a Scots person. What we are doing today is trying to give Scottish athletics
a higher level of attention in the public eye in Scotland. From that we can achieve. I think for 2012 we are probably looking at two people in the British team. I think that’s all we can hope for.”
Adding up to his remarks, the legendary performer of the past said, “There should be morel, I’d hope there would be more. In my days we probably had 12-15 people in the British team at different times. It would be good if we can add to the two people who
were in the British team this year in the World Championships”.
In Daegu, only four Scottish athletes could make in the English team, and as per expectations, the situation is less likely to change for the London Olympics.
Tags: