Injury rules Adam Gemili out of World Championships
BySportsbeat
Updated 16/08/2015 at 18:23 GMT
European 200m champion Adam Gemili admitted he had to begrudgingly accept the advice of others as he was withdrawn from the World Championships squad on medical grounds.
Adam Gemili
Image credit: AFP
The 21-year-old suffered a hamstring injury crossing the finish line at the Diamond League meeting in Birmingham in June.
And while not selected for an individual event at the Worlds which get underway in Beijing next Saturday, he had been included in the Great Britain team for the 4x100m relay.
He had been training with the rest of the squad at the holding camp in Fukuoka but the decision was taken to withdraw him, with British Athletics performance director Neil Black consulting the latest medical feedback.
"I'm disappointed that I can't be part of the team, but I do understand the decision," said Gemili.
"As the performance director Neil has to make those sort of calls and I respect that he has done so, even though he knew I wanted to carry on.
"It will be very hard to watch from the sidelines in Beijing, but I will do anything I can to support the rest of the guys in their final preparations for the championships."
Black meanwhile added he felt the decision, albeit a difficult one, was the correct outcome based on Gemili's long-term aims.
"He has made amazing progress and it is a reflection on him that he so wanted to fulfil his commitment to the relay programme," he said.
"However we have to make difficult calls occasionally and this is the best for him with the Rio Olympics and the London 2017 World Championships on the horizon.
"We've got a superb relay squad, and the athletes work so hard together, I can understand him wanting to give every last effort to try and make the team."
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