Italian Olympic Committee ‘upset’ over Marcell Jacobs’ exclusion athletics awards list

Italian Olympic Committee ‘upset’ over Marcell Jacobs’ exclusion athletics awards list

Marcell Jacobs

Following a decade of Usain Bolt’s dominance in the men’s sprint events, the Tokyo Olympics finally saw a new 100m getting crowned. In Bolt’s absence, Italy’s Marcell Jacobs clinched the 100m title before he bagged the pole position in the 4x100m relay. Despite such a prolific outing at the Tokyo Olympics, Jacobs was left out of the nominees’ list for male athlete of the year by World Athletics.

Despite being the only male athlete to win two golds at the Games, the sprinter missed the list as did his countrymate Gianmarco Tamberi. Tamberi was tied for Olympic gold with Mutaz Barshim in the men’s high jump before both of them decided to share it. “It’s profoundly wrong,” Italian Olympic Committee president Giovanni Malagò said. “We’re very upset.”

Did withdrawal from Diamond League events cost Marcell Jacobs the nomination?

Marcell Jacobs
Marcell Jacobs

Marcell Jacobs, did not compete after the Olympics as he withdrew from his remaining Diamond League events to recover from a knee injury. The withdrawal might have been the reason behind the commission. “As always, the World Athletics Awards will recognise athletes who have performed at the highest level across the year, taking into account not only the Olympic Games but the one-day meeting circuits,” World Athletics president Sebastian Coe said.

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The 10 nominees are Joshua Cheptegei, Ryan Crouser, Mondo Duplantis, Jakob Ingebrigtsen, Eliud Kipchoge, Pedro Pichardo, Daniel Stahl, Miltiadis Tentoglou, Damian Warner and Karsten Warholm. The nominees were selected by an international panel of athletics experts, comprising representatives from all six continental areas of World Athletics.

Also Read | ‘The 100m was very open’ – Usain Bolt opens up on Marcell Jacobs’ Tokyo Olympics triumph

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