Rojé Stona made history at the Paris Olympics by winning Jamaica's first Olympic gold in a throwing event. He decided to start competing for Turkey, which cost him the World Championships in Tokyo last year, but his nationality change is being stopped by the international athletics federation World Athletics. Ten other athletes, including several Olympic and World Championship medalists, have received the same decision from World Athletics.
According to World Athletics, the panel found that the applications constituted part of a coordinated recruitment strategy led by the Turkish government, implemented through a wholly owned and state-funded club to attract foreign athletes with lucrative contracts. 7 million kronor, a fixed monthly salary, and bonuses based on results. Turkey's plan was for Stona and others to represent the nation at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.
The panel found that the applications constituted part of a coordinated recruitment strategy led by the Turkish government, through a wholly owned and state-funded club, to attract foreign athletes through lucrative contracts.
The athletes stopped from competing for Turkey include Rojé Stona, Wayne Pinnock, Brigid Kosgei, Ronald Kwemoi, Rajindra Campbell, Catherine Relin Amanang'ole, Jaydon Hibbert, Favour Ofili, Brian Kibor, Nelvin Jepkemboi, and Sophia Yakushina. It remains unclear what specific criteria or rules World Athletics used to determine that the applications were part of a coordinated government strategy, and what will happen to the athletes' eligibility to compete for their original countries or other nations after this decision. How this decision will affect Turkey's athletic program and its preparations for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics is also unknown.