THE ATHLETES really deserve better than this.
Dina Asher-Smith, on the biggest night of her life, when she runs the quickest time ever by a British woman, deserves so much more.
British star Dina Asher-Smith won the silver medal in the 100m event on Sunday nightCredit: Alamy Live News
And the IAAF should hang its head in shame. President Seb Coe must shoulder the responsibility for this farce.
The decision to award Doha the 17th World Athletics Championships has backfired spectacularly.
The world champs are only behind the World Cup and the Olympics in terms of scale and global appeal and this is the first time it has been held in an Arab nation.
And while low ticket sales have happened before, notably in Moscow and Beijing, the lack of interest in track-and-field in Qatar is appalling.
The Khalifa International Stadium has a capacity of 40,000 and yet only a few thousand were present at 11.20pm local time last night as Asher-Smith created British sporting history.
The 23-year-old won 100m world silver in a national record time of 10.83sec. It was Britain’s first 100m female global medal for 59 years.
And yet when she walked around the stadium, her shoulder draped in a union flag, there was nobody around to celebrate. Everybody had gone.
There was almost no fans at the 40,000-seater Khalifa International Stadium as Asher-Smith celebrated her silver medalCredit: Getty Images – Getty
Many fans, including a large of contingent of Indians, had left before the women’s 100m started once the 4x400m mixed relay was over.
You cannot necessarily blame Qatar. This is a country that has a population of 2.61m people and 89 per cent of them are migrant workers.
And maybe if Usain Bolt had been here, then there would have been far more interest.
But you have to question the timing and scheduling of these events.
It’s not ideal for fans to stay up so late to watch athletics. It’s not ideal having to wait 30 minutes for your headline act without anything in-between.
You have to question the folly of holding an event in the Middle East when it’s 38 degrees outside. Even if it has been moved back to late September from its traditional slot of early August.
Yes, the cooling technology in the stadium has been its saviour and prevented serious issues.
But as the marathon showed, when nearly half of the women’s elite field withdrew and required medical attention, the heat and humidity at this time of the year is unacceptable for a world-class sporting event.
Allegations persist about how Qatar won the rights to host these worlds.
Accusations of bribes and corruptions. These have all been denied by the country’s rulers and the governing body.
The World Cup will be different, of course. Football is more popular here, the Premier League is accessible on the TV channels.
And fans will receive great hospitality from hotel staff and within the stadium (even if the price of a pint of beer is £10).
Denise Lewis has slammed the IAAF for bringing the World Championships to Doha
In my short time here, it seems that if they have a problem, the Qataris believe they can simply chuck around enough money to solve it.
They have enormous natural gas and oil reserves. And they have the clout to get things done quickly.
Yet the damage has already been done. These are depressing days for a sport which, in the absence of Bolt, badly needed good publicity.
Denise Lewis slams IAAF for bringing World Athletics Championships to Doha after poor ticket sales
Source: Athletics - thesun.co.uk
