Puerto Rican Olympic Committee denied registration for Lima 2019 to two of its qualified athletes
Jolari Carreras and Nimsay Garcia qualified but local Olympic authorities are not registering them because they believe they will not be able to win medals. Now they are asking for reconsideration.
Puerto Ricans Jolari Carreras and Nimsay García, women's shortboard and SUP Surf competitors respectively, who qualified for the historic debut of surfing in Lima 2019, were blocked by the Olympic committee from competing in the tournament because they were considered to have no chance of winning medals, members of the athletes' families informed DUKE.
Jolari qualified for the spot after her compatriot Tia Blanco said she would not participate because she will be in the QS tournaments in California, and Nimsay qualified directly after finishing seventh in the Pan American surfing tournaments held in Punta Rocas in December 2018.
Both athletes asked their country's committee to reconsider its decision: “COPUR, this is a historic event. For the first time, surfing is Olympic. We already have a male representation in this category of shortboard and also in paddleboard. We also want to have female representation in these events. Don't take that opportunity away from Puerto Rico. If Jolari doesn't go, her spot will be given to another country. One would think that the hardest thing was to get into that group of 16 competitors, but no, the hardest thing is for your country to support you and say yes,” Carreras wrote on social media.
A similar situation occurred with Colombian Daniel Olmos, who qualified for the Games but his country's Olympic committee chose not to register him because the methodologists considered that he would not be able to win the medals.
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Related Notes:
Venezuela achieved last-minute qualification for Lima 2019
Longboarder Mariana Bermúdez entered after the withdrawal of Brisa Hennessy from Costa Rica
Tia Blanco also said no to Lima 2019
The Puerto Rican chose to be at the US Open. It is presumed that the free spot will be occupied by another Puerto Rican: Jolari Carrera.
Samanta Alonso from Panama got into Lima 2019
American Summer Macedo withdrew from the event presumably because it coincides with the US Open
Rain of qualifiers for Lima 2019
A crucial day brought surfers from Brazil, Peru, Costa Rica, Argentina, Puerto Rico, Chile, Uruguay, El Salvador, Colombia, Mexico, Ecuador and Canada into the second largest multi-sport tournament in the world
René Gough's situation ahead of Lima 2019
In the last official statement it was said that the Dominican would qualify if what happened in France happened, but a special situation was not taken into account so the Dominican may be left out.
The Olympic swell
For the third consecutive year, waves hit Japan during the window period for Tokyo 2020
Tickets for the Lima 2019 surfing competition are now on sale
They cost between $6 and $9 for the general public. It is not clear what will happen to those sold for days that are within the waiting period and there is no event.
