IAAF’s sellout to Qatar was the first leg of a double which sees the 2021 follow-up take place in Eugene, Oregon, home of Nike
When Adam Gemili walked towards his blocks in lane seven for his heat of the men’s 200m at the IAAF world championships in Doha on Sunday night, he looked up and waved to friends and family in the grandstand. They would not have been hard to spot among a crowd estimated at around 1,000 scattered around a stadium built for 40,000.
On perhaps the worst weekend for athletics in the sport’s long history there seemed no end to the ways being found to insult the people who actually do the running, jumping and throwing. All the poisons to have entered the sport’s systems in recent times were pooling in the echoing emptiness of the air-conditioned Khalifa stadium.
Written by Richard Williams
This news first appeared on https://www.theguardian.com/sport/blog/2019/sep/30/doha-empty-seats-iaaf-sellout-world-athletics-championships under the title “Doha’s empty seats tell tale of corruption, warped priorities and vested interests | Richard Williams”. Bolchha Nepal is not responsible or affiliated towards the opinion expressed in this news article.
