An English-born sprinter with an Irish mother has written a heartfelt open letter to IAAF President Seb Coe pleading with him to grant his “dream” transfer to Ireland,
.Leon Reid first made formal contact with Ireland about a transfer of allegiance over a year ago in honour of his mother, who passed away last year.
However, the 22-year-old says his application was mishandled by British Athletics after they were approached by Athletics Ireland last January and, subsequently, a freeze on international transfers was introduced by the IAAF in February.
A European U23 and Junior silver medallist with Team GB, Reid ran two personal bests in finishing third at the recent British Championships, including a run of 20.38 seconds, to achieve the 200m qualification standard for the World Championships.
The final date of selection for the championships, which will be held in London’s Olympic Stadium next month, is Sunday, July 23.
Reid’s letter is written under six headings: background, dedication, transfer from GB to Ireland, duty of care, loss of earnings and compassion.
He begins by noting that the IAAF cleared eight athletes from the banned Russian athletics system to compete as neutrals, and asks for his case to receive similar compassion from Coe.
“I am an extremely dedicated athlete,” writes Reid. “As a child who grew up in the care system, the concentration of energy, focus and discipline demanded by my dream of becoming a professional athlete proved to be my salvation.
“To work so hard for something and potentially have it cruelly taken away from me is even harder to take knowing how hard the past two years have been.
“My biological mother is Irish, and my foster mother is second generation Irish. I have many Irish family members and strong links and affinity to the country. It has long been a dream of mine to one day compete for Ireland internationally — a decision which was ultimately made in honour of my mum who passed away last year.”
He adds that the governing bodies have a duty of care to enable him to compete, saying “I don't want to be a victim of other people's oversights or even a political situation”.
He notes that he would lose a significant amount in earnings and prestige, before ending with a personal appeal to Coe, himself a four-time Olympic medallist.
“I ask you to look at my case and view it from an athlete's perspective — from my perspective. All I want is to have the chance to compete. If I don't compete I will never know how good I can be.
“I am personally asking you to be compassionate and allow me the opportunity to pursue my dream.”