World Athletics Championships: Chris Thompson ‘absolutely devastated’ as visa delays force withdrawal from marathon | Athletics News
Chris Thompson, 41, will represent Great Britain and Northern Ireland over 26.2 miles at the World Athletics Championships on Sunday; The UK athlete released a statement on Friday saying there had been “significant delays in the processing of his US visa”
Last Updated: 7/15/22 5:40pm
Chris Thompson won’t be able to compete at the World Athletics Championships
British runner Chris Thompson is “totally devastated” after a visa delay forced him to withdraw from the marathon at the World Athletics Championships this weekend.
Last year, Thompson famously qualified and then competed over 26.2 miles at the Tokyo Olympics at the age of 40.
His amazing run at the British Olympic Marathon trials (in personal best) comes just days after he became a dad. Thompson went on to finish as the top Englishman in Tokyo.
The 41-year-old will again represent his country at the World Athletics Championships on Sunday, but was forced to withdraw just days before the race.
On Friday, UK Athletics issued a statement saying Thompson would not be able to play following “significant delays in the processing of his US visa”.
“I’m absolutely devastated, I’m not going to be in Eugene to compete,” the athlete said.
“This is my main goal for the year and I’ve been preparing for it. I never knew what could happen, but I had high expectations for myself to go out. It’s never going to happen and it’s hard to believe yes.
“However, I am very grateful to my close network of family, friends, colleagues and officials, who have supported and rallied because of me, to try to correct the situation.”
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Thompson spoke of his amazing run at the Olympic Marathon in the UK last year and there will be no chance to repeat that kind of performance on the World stage.
The UK athlete said they were in “close contact” with World Athletics and had also enlisted the help of the UK Government to resolve the “last minute deadlock”.
“We are obviously saddened for Chris that he was unable to make it to Eugene for the World Athletics Championships,” said Paula Dunn, GB & NI team leader.
“We are grateful for the intervention and support of World Athletics and the UK Government to try to solve the problem, but time is running out.
“We regret that Chris will miss Worlds because he worked extremely hard to be able to race here.”
Joshua Griffiths was named the sole representative for Great Britain and Northern Ireland in the men’s marathon, which takes place at 2:15pm BST (6:15am local time) on Sunday.
Rose Harvey, Jess Piasecki and Charlotte Purdue will enter the women’s race on the same day.
Coe admits some visa cases will not be resolved
Earlier, on Friday, the president of world athletics Lord Sebastian Coe acknowledged that not all outstanding visa cases will be resolved.
Nearly 400 athletes and officials had visa problems trying to enter the United States before the Championships began.
Kenyan sprinter Ferdinand Omanyala – who won the Africa 100m title last month – is expected to arrive in Eugene just three hours before his race.
World Athletics President Lord Sebastian Coe has accepted the visa issue will continue to be an issue in Eugene
Lord Coe said: “We will work to the last minute but will we be able to get all those issues resolved in time to start the competition? No, we won’t.”
“One thing that was clear to me when we tried to do the best we could was that it was very complicated. In terms of relative percentages, it’s a small number but it’s uncomfortable if you’re in that category.
“Of course there are lessons to be learned but the bottom line is that this is a very complex landscape. You can’t look at one thing where you can say it’s the dominant issue.”
Muir one of the first Britons on the track
Laura Muir arrives in Oregon in shape and is a medal contender
The action kicks off in Eugene on Friday, with day one featuring Laura Muir starting her campaign to win her first ever World Championships medal over the 1,500m in the hot ring.
Muir finished fourth in London five years ago and fifth in Doha in 2019. She battled the injuries that led to that championship but, after last summer’s 1,500m Olympic silver medal, she I feel like I’ve confirmed myself.
“We’ve done that now and that takes a bit of the pressure off and if anything makes me more dangerous,” Scot said.
“I don’t have that weight on my shoulders. I can go out there and be more comfortable. When I’m relaxed, I run better.
“It’s great to be in and not have that pressure on yourself knowing you have to win this medal or we’ve never won a global outdoor medal. I don’t have to prove myself.”
The first six from each match will qualify for the semi-finals, plus the six fastest losers. One of Muir’s gold medal opponents will be Faith Kipyegon of Kenya, who beat her to Olympic gold in Japan last year, and hasn’t lost since Tokyo.
Muir was joined in the hot laps of Katie Snowden and Melissa Courtney-Bryant, while Reece Prescod and Zharnel Hughes ran in the 100m hot lap.
Nick Miller (hammer) and Sophie McKinna (long shot) also entered the competition, with Holly Bradshaw aiming for more Olympic bronze when she started competing in pole vaulting.
The 4x400m medley relay team also had a chance to win the UK’s first medal with a hot game and final on opening day at Hayward Field.
