media_artricles :: 2017

Grace in every circumstance

Callender says his piece on golden upgrade

Members of the Trinidad and Tobago Beijing 2008 sprint relay squad, Keston Bledman, Marc Burns, Emmanuel Callender, Richard "Torpedo" Thompson and alternate Aaron Armstrong, are set to receive Olympic gold, following the disqualification of Jamaican Nesta Carter, who tested positive for the prohibited substance metheylhexaneamine in a retrospective drug test.

Last week, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) stripped Carter and his Jamaica teammates of their 4x100 metres title, clearing the way for a golden upgrade for Team T&T. In the Beijing final, Bledman, Burns, Callender and Thompson, running in that order, had claimed silver for the Red, White and Black.

The expectation of Olympic gold has led to discussion in the public domain about rewards for international sporting success and respect for athletes.

In an open letter to the people of T&T, Callender gives his take:

"This is the first time I feel the need to speak on this recent issue."

"I cannot speak for or on behalf of the other team members primarily because we each have matured with varying degrees of perception. We enjoy different degrees of economic and social status."

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