Hurdler Sanique Walker says she is extremely disappointed after missing out on the opportunity to represent Jamaica at the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo, Japan and pointed to what she described as potentially poor communication and oversight by the Jamaica Athletics Administrative Association.

Walker was named as an alternate on Jamaica’s team and it was expected that the 25-year-old, who recently won silver at the NACAC Championship, would be called in to replace Rushell Clayton, who was forced to withdraw from the championships due to a leg injury.

However, Team Manager Ian Forbes, while confirming Clayton’s injury and withdrawal on Wednesday, pointed out that Walker would not be given the opportunity to replace her due to what he termed as “logistical challenges”.

But Walker told the Jamaica Observer that she was not able to compete because she was not given the opportunity to take the mandatory SRY gene test, which is required for all female athletes competing at the championships.

The gene test is the latest move by World Athletics to protect the integrity of women athletics.

“I am disappointed with how I was treated as the alternate for the women’s 400m hurdles. I was never given the chance or opportunity to take the SRY gene test,” Walker told the Jamaica Observer.

Walker shared that tests were facilitated for team members at the NACAC Championship in The Bahamas but she was never given the opportunity.

“There was a list of athletes that were chosen to do the test in The Bahamas and my name was not a part of that list and that is why we are in this predicament now. Initially, I thought that as an alternate, I would have travelled with the team to Tokyo, received the same information, and been properly prepared if needed. Instead, I found out that was not the case,” she explained.

“However, being at home on standby was not an issue. When I got the call to compete at Worlds on Monday, I was getting myself ready to get to Tokyo, but they called the next day saying that it’s not possible because they thought I had done the test. I was confused on how they thought I had done it when my name wasn’t included in the list of the athletes they made do it in The Bahamas. I just hope moving forward, they stay on top of things like these,” Walker shared.

“Athletes can’t be missing out on opportunities like these because of poor communication and bad management,” she added.

The test, which detects the SRY gene via a cheek swab or blood sample to determine eligibility for women’s sports, must be conducted under the supervision of World Athletics’ member federations and the results analyzed in a lab.

In a press release on August 12, the JAAA announced the new SRY gene testing requirements while urging all athletes to complete the process as soon as possible — ahead of the September 1 deadline for the results — “to avoid any last-minute issues”.

It advised that Jamaica-based athletes could conduct the test at the Caribbean Genetics Clinic located at The University of the West Indies, Mona Campus, while athletes residing overseas should arrange for testing at a reputable clinic in their area.