Jamaica Olympic Team Manager: Thomas-Dodd’s Coach Received Pass

Team Manager for Jamaica’s Olympic squad, Ludlow Watts, says the coach for shot put athlete, Danniel Thomas-Dodd, did receive a coaching pass to be in the stadium on the day of her event in Paris.

Watts is also Treasurer at the Jamaica Athletics Administrative Association, JAAA.

He was responding to Thomas-Dodd’s allegation that the entity and the Jamaica Olympic Association did not sufficiently support field events athletes at the games.

Mahiri Stewart reports.

During an interview with SportsMax on Thursday, Danniel Thomas-Dodd, said her personal coach was denied accreditation to the training facility in Paris and was not able to access it for two and half weeks.

She said her coach is not just part of her training process, but is crucial to her warm up as well.

But speaking on Nationwide This Morning on Friday, Ludlow Watts stopped short of calling the athlete a liar. He disclosed that Thomas-Dodd’s coach was in fact in Paris with her.

He argued too, that the national throwers coach was available to Thomas-Dodd and the other field athletes at the Paris training facility.

Watt says a member of the JAAA coaching staff delivered the coaching pass to Thomas-Dodd’s coach. He says the member shared the information in the presence of himself and two others.

Watts says the coaching pass allowed Thomas-Dodd’s coach to be at her event in the stadium. However, it’s not clear if it allowed him access to the training facility.

In terms of training, the Jamaica’s Olympic squad manager says Thomas-Dodd did not attend the team’s preparatory training camp in Germany in July.

Meanwhile, Watts says members of his team have sought to make contact with Thomas-Dodd on the matter.

However, he’s uncertain if they have been successful in speaking with the shot putter.

And Mr. Watts says offering incentives to relay athletes has been suggested as a way to encourage more of them to participate in training camps ahead of major competitions.

He made the disclosure in light of concerns that there was not enough practice by the Jamaican athletes for the relays.

Ludlow Watts, Team Manager for Jamaica’s Olympic team and Treasurer of the JAAA.