So embarrassing for Paris organization. To not allow a high profile athlete in because she didn’t come on the team bus?? Really embarrassing if true.
This was my first reaction when I heard this and then saw the video from inside the bus but I just got some on-the-ground intel.
So SAFP is correct on one thing - the gate was open yesterday for both team buses and walk-in athletes and they changed it overnight because athletes that come from the village on the bus are obviously already security cleared and can go through on the bus en masse - obviously walk-in athletes can't (they need to have bags inspected etc). So makes perfect sense to do that as it's a pure time and efficiency aspect.
However I was told that this was communicated very clearly to team management /athletes - so in the instance SAFP didn't know this is 100% on the Jamaican team management not informing her. The final part of this? The "other gate" in question - 125m (400 feet) away. So not really a massive inconvenience her to walk maybe a total of 250m to get through security and right back to the place the bus would have taken you anyway. Obviously if the alternate gate was say 500m away some common sense/flexibility could have been applied purely for today ie. let athletes in but tell anyone that comes through very clearly that as of tomorrow it's closed. But I don't think this really was necessary with an alternative entry so close.
I was then told that this ended up holding up the athletes on the bus for 10-15min as SAFP unfolded the drama which of course involved her using the "you know who I am" card, calling for upper management of security to come sport it out etc etc - not great.
The words said to me were "talk about entitlement" and "the issue is they get told YES to everything".
To throw a tantrum that held other competing athletes up, be unable to walk 125m to get in (Sha'Carri did) and then drop out of the event leaving a lane open? Not a good look Shelly-Ann. I'm on the side of the LOC (Local Organizing Committee) here - they did nothing wrong.
Something doesn’t smell right. Why would she be so stupidly egoistic (?) to throw away an Olympic semifinal to resist walking 125m? She’s never seemed like that kind of a contentious person on screen.
Something doesn’t smell right. Why would she be so stupidly egoistic (?) to throw away an Olympic semifinal to resist walking 125m? She’s never seemed like that kind of a contentious person on screen.
So what do you think it is then - the LOC decided to change the policy on this entry and just not tell anyone and then have to then explain to hordes of walk-in athletes they couldn't use the gate?
It doesn't sound plausible they made a blanket announcement and expected individual team managements to inform their athletes? No? That's strange because many athletes did get the memo (I've checked with some who confirmed they were told exactly this so I know for a fact this announcement was made). End of the day this will be very easy to confirm with the LRC guys on the ground - I'm sure one of them can simply find out from someone on team management or any one of many athletes if this is the case.
As for SAFP's on track vs off-track persona? Trust me, don't believe everything you see on television - and I'm not directing that solely at here. As to why she couldn't walk her 125m? I have zero clue, could be any number of things including ego - which would be the top of my list.
This post was edited 1 minute after it was posted.
Being a top athlete at the Olympics is exactly when "do you know who I am" reasoning should be used! They couldn't just glance in her bag and wave her through? Or even just let her in without checking her bag because she's, you know, one of the most famous athletes in history?
This needs to be a bigger story after we are done with the actual performances... no sense talking about who didnt run while we have current results and races happening.
Something doesn’t smell right. Why would she be so stupidly egoistic (?) to throw away an Olympic semifinal to resist walking 125m? She’s never seemed like that kind of a contentious person on screen.
So what do you think it is then - the LOC decided to change the policy on this entry and just not tell anyone and then have to then explain to hordes of walk-in athletes they couldn't use the gate?
It doesn't sound plausible they made a blanket announcement and expected individual team managements to inform their athletes? No? That's strange because many athletes did get the memo (I've checked with some who confirmed they were told exactly this so I know for a fact this announcement was made). End of the day this will be very easy to confirm with the LRC guys on the ground - I'm sure one of them can simply find out from someone on team management or any one of many athletes if this is the case.
As for SAFP's on track vs off-track persona? Trust me, don't believe everything you see on television - and I'm not directing that solely at here. As to why she couldn't walk her 125m? I have zero clue, could be any number of things including ego - which would be the top of my list.
Oh I don’t know what it is. Just here to learn WTH happened. NBC didn’t explain anything and I couldn’t understand what she was saying in some tiktokky short someone posted here.
Being a top athlete at the Olympics is exactly when "do you know who I am" reasoning should be used! They couldn't just glance in her bag and wave her through? Or even just let her in without checking her bag because she's, you know, one of the most famous athletes in history?
No - because then you set a precedent and you have to let everyone go through "just this one time" which circumvents the logical rule you are trying to put in place. And sure if the alt entry was half a mile away then okay, have some leeway built in - but a 1min walk? I don't care if you are the greatest woman sprinter ever or not.
So what do you think it is then - the LOC decided to change the policy on this entry and just not tell anyone and then have to then explain to hordes of walk-in athletes they couldn't use the gate?
It doesn't sound plausible they made a blanket announcement and expected individual team managements to inform their athletes? No? That's strange because many athletes did get the memo (I've checked with some who confirmed they were told exactly this so I know for a fact this announcement was made). End of the day this will be very easy to confirm with the LRC guys on the ground - I'm sure one of them can simply find out from someone on team management or any one of many athletes if this is the case.
As for SAFP's on track vs off-track persona? Trust me, don't believe everything you see on television - and I'm not directing that solely at here. As to why she couldn't walk her 125m? I have zero clue, could be any number of things including ego - which would be the top of my list.
Oh I don’t know what it is. Just here to learn WTH happened. NBC didn’t explain anything and I couldn’t understand what she was saying in some tiktokky short someone posted here.
Neither do I. I was just reporting back some facts around the incident because the narrative was she was unfairly denied entry and that's not the case at all. Why she chose to just mail it in? I have zero idea.
So embarrassing for Paris organization. To not allow a high profile athlete in because she didn’t come on the team bus?? Really embarrassing if true.
This was my first reaction when I heard this and then saw the video from inside the bus but I just got some on-the-ground intel.
So SAFP is correct on one thing - the gate was open yesterday for both team buses and walk-in athletes and they changed it overnight because athletes that come from the village on the bus are obviously already security cleared and can go through on the bus en masse - obviously walk-in athletes can't (they need to have bags inspected etc). So makes perfect sense to do that as it's a pure time and efficiency aspect.
However I was told that this was communicated very clearly to team management /athletes - so in the instance SAFP didn't know this is 100% on the Jamaican team management not informing her. The final part of this? The "other gate" in question - 125m (400 feet) away. So not really a massive inconvenience her to walk maybe a total of 250m to get through security and right back to the place the bus would have taken you anyway. Obviously if the alternate gate was say 500m away some common sense/flexibility could have been applied purely for today ie. let athletes in but tell anyone that comes through very clearly that as of tomorrow it's closed. But I don't think this really was necessary with an alternative entry so close.
I was then told that this ended up holding up the athletes on the bus for 10-15min as SAFP unfolded the drama which of course involved her using the "you know who I am" card, calling for upper management of security to come sport it out etc etc - not great.
The words said to me were "talk about entitlement" and "the issue is they get told YES to everything".
To throw a tantrum that held other competing athletes up, be unable to walk 125m to get in (Sha'Carri did) and then drop out of the event leaving a lane open? Not a good look Shelly-Ann. I'm on the side of the LOC (Local Organizing Committee) here - they did nothing wrong.
That rule makes sense if it was implemented from the start. But, that sounds so basic and sensible that the LOC should of thought about that before the games. Are they so disorganised that they are just playing their security plans by ear? Thats concering.
You can't just change the rules randomly in the middle of an event and expect the information is going to be communicated to the athletes/drivers in less than 12 hours.
Also the video doesn't make it clear if the alternative entry was communicated to SAP at the time of the incident. I'd be on your side if they had escorts at the bus gate ready to walk athletes to the correct entry. But imagine you are an athlete that shows up to the gate you entered last time and they just say you can't use this gate. Are you really expected to search for the other entry. What if there is no other entry. What if you aren't allowed in that entry too. If they had escorts that walked you to that gate it would give the athletes more certainty that they won't be wandering all around the facility figuring out how they are going to get in. The situation would stress me out too. 250m isn't a long walk, but its 3 min, and then 3min back if that gate isn't open, plus now they have to go through security at that gate. How long does that take? I'd be thinking "uh oh, I didn't plan for an airport long security line before my warm up." Athletes plan for a specific amount of time to do their warm up. While there is a buffer for unexpected issues, you can't change the rules from "just walk straight in" to "Now its like an international ariport where you are running around trying to find your gate and go through an unfamiliar security proceedure." Thats stressful, and unecessary. Some types of people are more chill and will be fine in that situation, but some are really easily stressed by that sort of thing.
Everyone is a bit in the wrong here. SAP seems to have possibly over reacted a little, but don't make it sound like the LOC did a good/normal job, they did a bad job, and they deserve to be complained about, esepcially if they weren't volunteering escorts to accomodate the situation.
This was my first reaction when I heard this and then saw the video from inside the bus but I just got some on-the-ground intel.
So SAFP is correct on one thing - the gate was open yesterday for both team buses and walk-in athletes and they changed it overnight because athletes that come from the village on the bus are obviously already security cleared and can go through on the bus en masse - obviously walk-in athletes can't (they need to have bags inspected etc). So makes perfect sense to do that as it's a pure time and efficiency aspect.
However I was told that this was communicated very clearly to team management /athletes - so in the instance SAFP didn't know this is 100% on the Jamaican team management not informing her. The final part of this? The "other gate" in question - 125m (400 feet) away. So not really a massive inconvenience her to walk maybe a total of 250m to get through security and right back to the place the bus would have taken you anyway. Obviously if the alternate gate was say 500m away some common sense/flexibility could have been applied purely for today ie. let athletes in but tell anyone that comes through very clearly that as of tomorrow it's closed. But I don't think this really was necessary with an alternative entry so close.
I was then told that this ended up holding up the athletes on the bus for 10-15min as SAFP unfolded the drama which of course involved her using the "you know who I am" card, calling for upper management of security to come sport it out etc etc - not great.
The words said to me were "talk about entitlement" and "the issue is they get told YES to everything".
To throw a tantrum that held other competing athletes up, be unable to walk 125m to get in (Sha'Carri did) and then drop out of the event leaving a lane open? Not a good look Shelly-Ann. I'm on the side of the LOC (Local Organizing Committee) here - they did nothing wrong.
That rule makes sense if it was implemented from the start. But, that sounds so basic and sensible that the LOC should of thought about that before the games. Are they so disorganised that they are just playing their security plans by ear? Thats concering.
You can't just change the rules randomly in the middle of an event and expect the information is going to be communicated to the athletes/drivers in less than 12 hours.
Also the video doesn't make it clear if the alternative entry was communicated to SAP at the time of the incident. I'd be on your side if they had escorts at the bus gate ready to walk athletes to the correct entry. But imagine you are an athlete that shows up to the gate you entered last time and they just say you can't use this gate. Are you really expected to search for the other entry. What if there is no other entry. What if you aren't allowed in that entry too. If they had escorts that walked you to that gate it would give the athletes more certainty that they won't be wandering all around the facility figuring out how they are going to get in. The situation would stress me out too. 250m isn't a long walk, but its 3 min, and then 3min back if that gate isn't open, plus now they have to go through security at that gate. How long does that take? I'd be thinking "uh oh, I didn't plan for an airport long security line before my warm up." Athletes plan for a specific amount of time to do their warm up. While there is a buffer for unexpected issues, you can't change the rules from "just walk straight in" to "Now its like an international ariport where you are running around trying to find your gate and go through an unfamiliar security proceedure." Thats stressful, and unecessary. Some types of people are more chill and will be fine in that situation, but some are really easily stressed by that sort of thing.
Everyone is a bit in the wrong here. SAP seems to have possibly over reacted a little, but don't make it sound like the LOC did a good/normal job, they did a bad job, and they deserve to be complained about, esepcially if they weren't volunteering escorts to accomodate the situation.
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