Blow To 5 Kenyan Athletes Seeking Switch Of Allegiance To Türkiye

World Athletics has turned down requests by several elite Kenyan athletes seeking to switch allegiance to Türkiye for international competitions.

Among those affected by the decision on Thursday, April 16, are former women’s marathon world record holder Brigid Kosgei and former 5000m world silver medallist Ronald Kwemoi. Others include long-distance runner Catherine Relin Amanang’ole, alongside Brian Kibor and Nelvin Jepkemboi.

The sports governing body's decision also impacts non-Kenyan athletes who had applied to represent Türkiye, including Jamaica’s Rajindra Campbell, Jaydon Hibbert, Wayne Pinnock, and Rojé Stona, Nigeria’s Favour Ofili, and Russia’s Sophia Yakushina.

In rejecting the applications, World Athletics pointed to concerns that approving the switches would undermine its rules on eligibility and transfer of allegiance.

Ronald Kwemoi in action at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. /SPORTSBOOM

“The panel found that the applications formed part of a coordinated recruitment strategy led by the Türkiye government acting through a wholly owned and financed government club, to attract overseas athletes through lucrative contracts, with the aim of facilitating transfers of allegiance and enabling those athletes to represent Türkiye at future international competitions, including the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games," the body stated in part.

World Athletics further noted that countries should prioritise nurturing homegrown talent and avoid overreliance on recruiting athletes from abroad.

"Given the common features across the applications, the panel assessed them together and determined that such an approach is inconsistent with the core principles of the regulations. These principles are designed to safeguard the credibility of international competition, encourage Member Federations to invest in the development of domestic talent, and maintain confidence among athletes that national teams are not primarily assembled through external recruitment."

World Athletics further clarified the implications of the ruling: “As a result of the decisions, the athletes are not eligible to represent Türkiye in national representative competitions or other relevant international events. The panel noted, however, that this does not prevent the athletes from competing in one-day meetings or road races in a personal or club capacity, or from living and training in Türkiye.”

World Athletics On Athletes Switching Countries

World Athletics regulations on transfer of allegiance stipulate that athletes must be at least 20 years old before they can switch national representation in international competitions, a threshold meant to ensure maturity and adherence to eligibility standards.

The rules also impose a compulsory three-year waiting period before an athlete can compete for a new country, a safeguard aimed at curbing quick nationality switches and preserving authentic ties between athletes and their respective federations.

For any transfer to go through, approval must be secured from World Athletics as well as both the athlete’s current and prospective national federations, ensuring consensus before eligibility is granted under the governing body’s framework.

Athletes are further limited to a single nationality switch in their careers and must have already acquired citizenship of the new country before being cleared to feature in national team events, in line with strict eligibility criteria.

In cases where citizenship is obtained through marriage, the process can be fast-tracked under existing provisions. In exceptional circumstances, athletes may also be permitted to revert to their original country, subject to review and approval.

In August 2024, World Athletics announced that Bahrain would not be able to recruit athletes from other countries until 2027, a decision that came in the wake of Kenyan-born Winfred Yavi snatching gold in the 3000m steeplechase for Bahrain at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, raising serious concerns regarding the trend of Kenyan athletes switching allegiances to other countries.

Yavi switched her allegiance to Bahrain in 2016 after failing to secure a place on Team Kenya despite several trials. She has since become a formidable competitor for Kenyan athletes on the international stage, with victory in the Olympics in the capital of France, over Kenya's Beatrice Chepkoech.

Other Kenyans who had opted to run for Bahrain include Eunice Chumba, Abraham Rotich, Ruth Jebet, Eunice Jepkirui, and Miriam Jeptoo, among others.

Kenya is seeking to prevent the haemorrhage of athletics talent in the East African country to other countries, with the competitors claiming gold for the foreign nations at Kenya's expense, a matter that continues to threaten the country's popularity for coming out on top in athletics, especially middle and long-distance races.