SICHEL IN SELECTION DISPUTE WITH UK ATHLETICS
Orkney's Great Britain international ultra distance runner, William Sichel from Sanday , has been in dispute with UK Athletics (UKA), the governing body for the sport of athletics in Britain , over changes to selection criteria for ultra distance running.
“Shortly before Christmas I was informed that UKA was planning to increase the distance required to qualify for the Great Britain 24hr men's team for 2004 and 2005. Not only were they planning to add 5km (over 3 miles) to the selection standard (now 140miles/225km –team & 143miles/230km – individual) but they were proposing to have a qualification deadline of March 10 th giving runners no chance at all of achieving the new standard as there are no races before then.”
As only one runner has the lower ‘team' standard from last year this effectively wipes out the Great Britain men's team at a stroke.
UKA have increased the standards as a result of the high standard of last October's first World 24hr Championships in Holland . William pointed out to UKA that standards should only be changed as a result of a trend, not on the results of one event. The Dutch event unusually experienced near perfect weather conditions and the stimulus of world competition. It is too early to say yet whether this trend will continue in the 2004 World Championships and beyond.
William suggested to UKA that the fairest plan would be to introduce the new standards in 2005 thus giving runners a long lead up to the new standards so that they could have a realistic chance of achieving them.
Eventually the only concession William could get from UKA was to have the closing date moved back to March 20 th . This gives runners just one chance to achieve the new standard in the first race of the year. However, they must travel to an indoor 48hr race in Brno , the Czech Republic to do so.
William believes that if athletes are to be inspired and encouraged to raise their standards they need time to do so. Raising selection standards and giving runners little time to achieve them simply demotivates and demoralises runners.
“The highest representative accolade in any sport is to make the full, national team and people gear their training and preparation to achieving this end. I have represented Great Britain in ultra distance running 11 times since 1996 and intend to continue attempting to do so as long as I can.”
William will travel to a UKA sponsored Ultra Distance Squad Weekend in Loughborough on February 7 th and 8 th before finalising his training for the race in the Czech Republic on March 19 th /20 th /21st.
In December 2002 William set new Guinness World Records for both 100 miles and 24hrs on the treadmill. William was voted Orkney's first ‘Sportsman of the Year' in November 2000. He is a member of the Orkney Athletic Club. With his wife, Elizabeth, he runs the Orkney Angora mail order knitwear business in Sanday , Orkney.
William is grateful to sponsors Orkney Meat (main sponsor), The Ayre Hotel, The Orcadian and Crantit Dairy (Orkney Ice Cream).
Picture caption: William running to 4 th place in last year's Basel 24hr road race behind the World No1from Brazil.
Making contact:
William Sichel, Upper Breckan , Sanday , Orkney KW17 2AZ. Tel/Fax: 01857 600421. Mobile (whilst travelling only) 0794 128 3506. william@williamsichel.co.uk Running web site: http://www.williamsichel.co.uk/
Photographs:
Newsline Scotland (Press Agency). Tel 01224 594000. photos@newsline-scotland.co.uk
Ken Amer , Orkney Photographic. Tel 01856 873574, Mobile 07808 961780 info@orkneyphotographic.co.uk
William Sichel, ‘Free to use' photographs can be down loaded from my on-line photo album. Go to: http://www.williamsichel.co.uk/ and click on ‘Photos'.
19/01/04