Pushing doesn’t warrant protest – Quarrie

Donald Quarrie, technical director of Team Jamaica, says that there was not enough evidence to protest after 800 metres runner Natoya Goule was roughed up by a Ugandan athlete in the semi-final of the event on Saturday.

Goule almost missed today’s final after finishing fourth in heat three after a pushing incident with Halimah Nakaayi.

The former Manchester High athlete, who has a season’s best time of 1:57.90, could only manage 2:00.33 and squeezed into the final as one of the fastest losers.

The incident sparked rage among Jamaican supporters, who called for the disqualification of the Ugandan athlete.

Tape review

But Quarrie said that a review of the tape revealed that Nakaayi only used her arm when she was being boxed in.

He also said that the action wouldn’t have warranted a disqualification as both athletes had advanced to the final.

“In the 800m, there was a little bit of jostling, but in seeing the video, the runner in the inside from Uganda never switched her position.

It was our athlete, Goule, who moved a little bit, and the Ugandan used the arm action to prevent herself from being cut off, and based on that, there was no way they were going to disqualify the athlete providing also that both of them made it to the final,” Quarrie explained.

Nakaayi went on to win the race in a season’s best time of 1:59.35, while Eunice Jepkoech Sum of Kenya finished second in 2:00.10 and American Ce’ Aira Brown was third in 2:00.12.

Goule went into the meet as one of the favourites to win a medal as she had the second fastest time among the athletes entered, behind American Ajee Wilson with 1:57.72. She is also is trying to become the first Jamaican to win a medal in the two-lap event at a global outdoor championships.

The women’s 800m final is scheduled to go off at 2:10 p.m. (Jamaica time) today.