Fenlator-Victorian miffed with bobsleigh bosses
Questions IBSF’s explanation in aftermath of lost CAS appeal
Published:Wednesday | February 9, 2022 | 12:09 AMDaniel Wheeler/Staff Reporter
Olympian Jazmine Fenlator-Victorian has expressed concern regarding the International Bobsleigh and Skeleton Federation’s (IBSF) guidelines for participation in the aftermath of losing her appeal to compete in the two-woman bobsled event at the Beijing Winter Olympics.
The ruling came down from the Court of Arbitration for Sport on Monday after Fenlator-Victorian, a three-time Olympian, filed an appeal on Saturday, contesting the final IBSF rankings which saw Jamaica narrowly miss out on a qualifying spot for the event.
Fenlator-Victorian claimed that the IBSF did not follow their rules in calculating athlete points regarding a two-day Europa Cup event in Germany last year. With the first day of the event cancelled because of poor weather conditions, the suit alleged that the IBSF doubled points on the second day of the event, rather than allowing athletes to lose the points for the missed first day.
In an interview with the RJRGLEANER Communications Group on Monday, Fenlator-Victorian says while she accepts the decision, she could not understand the basis that the federation used to mount its defence for the events in question.
Racing event
“The IBSF were raising a definition of what participation means to justify their reasoning for counting double points for a race that didn’t happen. Their definition of participation, which was clearly stated by their representative, is that the word ‘participation’ means that the athlete is registered for that racing event, performs the two minimum required training runs and has a start number,” Fenlator-Victorian said. “It does not mean that they have to start in the race nor cross the finish line.”
The results meant that France claimed the final spot for the Winter Olympics although both France and Jamaica (Fenlator-Victorian along with teammate Audra Segree) were tied on points in the final standings.
In detailing her case, Fenlator-Victorian alleged bias towards European bobsleigh programmes, while programmes with limited resources continue to be disenfranchised.
Jamaica Bobsleigh and Skeleton Federation president Nelson ‘Chris’ Stokes said he was proud of the stance that Fenlator-Victorian took and maintains that the team is now focused on preparing for the competition which starts this weekend.
“Winning is one thing but the most important thing is to speak up and I am very proud of Jazmine for speaking up. We maintain that it is better that sport results are determined on the field of play and not in administration,” Stokes said.
Fenlator-Victorian will begin her medal quest on Saturday night Jamaica time in the Women’s Monobob event in her final Winter Olympic Games.