Bahrain denies forcing world champion Kamel to run

Officials have denied forcing world 1500m champion Youssef Saad Kamel to run in the Asian Games.

Bahraini athletics officials have denied forcing world 1500m champion Youssef Saad Kamel to run in the Asian Games despite the athlete claiming that he had been nursing an injury.

Kamel,born Gregory to Kenya’s former world 800m champion Billy Konchellah,looked leaden-footed in his heat on Monday,eventually finishing 18th out of the 20 starters in the two heats.

Kamel laid the blame for his performance squarely on his team officials,whom he said forced him to run despite an injury.

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“I injured my right knee in June. I told my team officials but they didn’t listen to me. They pushed me to come and that’s why I’m here,” an angry Kamel said.

“I’m not upset about my failure,but about their pushing me to run. I know that I can’t achieve anything with an injury.”

But Lounes Madene,technical manager for the Bahrain Athletics Association,said Kamel’s accusations were baseless.

“We never push any athletes to participate,” Madene told

the Bahraini daily Gulf Daily News.

“Every athlete has the freedom to compete or not. Everybody knows their own shape.

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“And if Youssef was really injured since June,then why did he participate in two meetings this summer?”

Kamel,who claimed he was injured in a car crash in June,did indeed race in two events in the summer.

He clocked 1:46.86 while finishing ninth and last in the 800m at the Stockholm Diamond League meet on August 6 and then timed 3:33.06 as he came fourth in the 1500m in Rieti,Italy,on August 29.