Solomon Islands marathon runner does 100m in over 14 seconds after loophole led to participation
Solomon Islands’ National Olympic Committee placed a marathon runner into its wildcard spot in the women’s 100m sprint in Paris.
Sharon Firisua, who is competing at her third Olympics, is one of two athletes representing the country located in the South Pacific.
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Firisua, a trained marathon runner who finished in 72nd place in Tokyo three years ago, agonisingly missed out on qualification at the Paris Games.
But in a wild turn of events for Firisua, the Olympics was no longer be a marathon but instead a sprint, in what is to be a peculiar situation for her.
She lined up in the 100 metre heats on Friday morning against the world’s fastest women in an event she had never previously raced in.
And it showed as Firisua came ninth in her preliminary heat with a time of 14.31 seconds, almost three seconds slower than the race winner.
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The decision has been criticised by athletics representatives in the Solomon Islands, including leading sprinter Jovita Arunia, who have demanded answers from the committee.
Smaller countries are often handed wildcard spots at the Olympics, giving them the chance to face off against the best on the planet, regardless of qualification times.
Michael Kuali, president of Solomon Islands Athletics Federation revealed the organisation was told to nominate a wildcard entrant for the 100m events by the Oceania Athletics Association.
"They said [the 100m] is the only space [at Paris] that remains for Solomon Islands," Kuali said.
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"The decision was for Sharon Firisua to represent the country in the 100m sprint instead.
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"And that's all we know about the selection. We've never been consulted for the selection process, they are the ones responsible for submitting athletes for the Olympics.
"But we've never been invited or consulted."
The decision has caused debate in the country on why a marathon runner has been chosen to compete in a sprint event.
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Solomon Islands' champion sprinter Arunia has described the decision as ‘unbelievable’ and revealed she is now considering quitting the sport.
"We're the actual sprinters. I don't know what went wrong, it's unbelievable," she said.
"I will not compete anymore because of what they did.
"We need new leaders who can help us young athletes, and also coaches to know what the demand is, and the struggles we go through."
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