Alexandria sprinter Kai Cole won’t be running in the U.S. Olympic trials this weekend, even though he’s fast enough.
In a message posted on social media Thursday, Cole said that his qualifying time of 10.05 seconds in the 100 meter dash at the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference’s outdoor track and field championships last month was rejected by USA Track & Field.
Cole, a 2018 graduate of Alexandria City High School, said that MEAC failed to get the track meet sanctioned.
“Despite my best efforts to appeal the decision, it was still denied, and unfortunately, my university didn’t fully support me in (the) effort to get the ruling overturned,” Cole wrote on Instagram.
Mayor Justin Wilson said that Cole should be running in the trials.
“The Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference and the USA Track & Field failed Kai Cole,” Wilson said on Facebook. “Kai is a 2018 graduate of Alexandria City High School and he SHOULD be competing this weekend at the US Olympic Trials. Alexandria is proud of you Kai! We honor your achievement.”
The MEAC released the following statement today:
“The MEAC was recently informed that our multiple appeals submitted last week to have Kai Cole approved to compete at this year’s USATF Olympic Trials were denied by USATF, despite his posting an automatic qualifying time at the MEAC Outdoor Track & Field Championship. Although the MEAC Outdoor Track and Field Championship remains an official NCAA Division-I championship event, USATF policy changes implemented this year resulted in the event not being officially sanctioned by USATF, making all competition results ineligible for Olympic Trial qualification. We understand Kai’s frustration and took all available steps to rectify the situation so he could compete in the Olympic Trials – an opportunity he clearly deserves. The MEAC fully supports our member institutions and student-athletes as they pursue their dreams and strive for excellence. We are disappointed by the decision from USATF and are working to ensure our track and field championships are sanctioned USATF events moving forward.
No further comments will be made regarding this matter.
