Blake expecting high security at World Championships

Following last week's terror attack in Manchester, England, president of the Jamaica Athletics Administrative Association (JAAA),

Dr Warren Blake, is expecting heightened security measures when the country's athletes arrive in that country ahead of the August 4-13 World Championships in London.

Jamaica's track and field stars will begin arriving in the country on July 22, for their pre-championships preparations in Birmingham, England, some 83 miles away from the attack, which happened during an Ariana Grande concert at the Manchester Arena.

The championships has gathered significant attention across the world given the fact that it will serve as Usain Bolt's final appearance at a major championship, and Blake says the local body is putting its trust in the London organisers and security mechanism, as far as the team's safety is concerned.

NORMALLY HAVE GOOD SECURITY

"We normally have good security on arrival. We expect heightened security for the camp that starts on July 22 to August 1 at the Birmingham University in the UK," Blake told The Gleaner yesterday.

Blake underlined the importance of the pre-championships camp, while noting that things are well in place.

"The training camp has been in place ever since I took over as president, and it is working by building camaraderie among the athletes in preparation for global events," Blake said. "Everything is in place for the training camp, as all the athletes will be there, unless there are special cases."

A suicide bomber detonated an improvised explosive device packed with nuts, bolts and other shrapnel in the foyer of the Manchester Arena during a concert featuring American singer Ariana Grande on May 22 at around 10:30 p.m. UK time.

Twenty-two persons were killed in the blast, which was declared by the Greater Manchester Police to be a terrorist attack and which has been identified as the deadliest attack in the United Kingdom since the July 2005 London bombings.