Luxolo Adams is Prepared to Fight Athletics South Africa for Taking Him off the Olympics Team

Van Niekerk won the 400m gold medal at the 2016 Olympics in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil, but failed to qualify for the final at the next Olympics in Tokyo, Japan, after spending the previous two years rehabbing a career-threatening injury to his knee. According to reports, van Niekerk’s inclusion for the men’s 200m race is also meant to help keep him fresh for the relay events, which the ASA believes can earn podium finishes.

However, Adams is not accepting the ASA’s decision without putting up a fight. Yesterday, as the rumors of his replacement were filtering into the press, he posted a picture of him mid-stride on the tracks, with the caption, “Fit and healthy, can't wait for #Paris2024.”

In the press statement posted to his Instagram earlier today, Adams decried the “lack of respect” being shown to him by the ASA, telling him of his withdrawal from the Olympics team via an informal channel and with three weeks to go to Paris 2024, considering all of his preparations. In March, Adams started undergoing treatment for a hamstring issue and reported his progress to the ASA, but the body withdrew him “despite being cleared to compete by my doctor,” he said in his statement.

For the first time this year, he competed in a 200m event in Italy, clocking 21.50 seconds, well below his personal best of 19.82 seconds recorded at the Paris Diamond League in 2022. Adams qualified for this year’s Olympics during last year’s World Athletics Championships in Budapest, Hungary, and he’s clearly raring to go after shrugging off his latest injury.

“It is ironic that ASA, which champions ‘the safeguarding of athletes,’ has treated me in this manner without considering the mental health and financial implications,” Adams wrote in his statement, adding that he was prepared to “fight for fairness.”

“I am currently seeking urgent legal intervention to prevent ASA from removing me from the team, which I qualified for, and for them to be transparent and consistent in their processes and selection criteria,” he said.

If Adams regains his spot on the team through legal channels, it would force the removal of van Niekerk from the Olympics team entirely. TimesLIVE reports that van Niekerk agreed to switch from the 400m race to the 200m race after persuasion from ASA. For now, Adams is listed as doubtful due to injury, per the Olympics website.