TOKYO, Japan – World Athletics has established a working group to review its athlete transfer of allegiance regulations, following concerns raised by Jamaica and several other federations about the system’s vulnerability to exploitation by wealthier nations.

The Jamaica Observer understands that the move comes in direct response to communication from the Jamaica Athletics Administrative Association (JAAA), which has warned that the current rules fail to protect smaller countries from losing talent to aggressive recruitment.

The JAAA had signalled its intention to highlight the issue at last week’s World Athletics Congress ahead of the World Championships in Tokyo, but ultimately refrained after receiving a response from World Athletics with the update regarding the steps being taken to address the concern.

JAAA Vice President Ian Forbes, who is also serving as Jamaica’s team leader at the championships, confirmed that the JAAA has received feedback from World Athletics and that the matter is being actively examined.

“It’s a live issue, it is being addressed, and we would have communicated and they would have acted upon it and a working group is in place looking at the entire situation,” Forbes told the Jamaica Observer.

The concerns have taken on fresh urgency after last summer’s Olympic Games, when several high-profile Jamaican athletes applied to switch allegiance to Turkey, reportedly lured by lucrative packages.

Olympic discus throw champion Roje Stona, long jump silver medallist Wayne Pinnock, shot put bronze medallist Rajindra Campbell, and triple jumper Jaydon Hibbert are all seeking to represent Turkey at the 2028 Olympic Games.

Forbes noted that Jamaica’s position has been echoed by several other national federations, underscoring the widespread unease about the impact of the current rules on the sport’s integrity.

“Particularly among the smaller federations, it’s a very sore point and of course there are others as well who feel the same way and are advocating for some parity, some leveling of the playing field as we move forward,” said Forbes.

Efforts to contact JAAA president Garth Gayle were unsuccessful.

World Athletics’ eligibility rules for a transfer of allegiance generally requires an athlete to prove a genuine, close, and established link to a new country, typically through citizenship and a minimum three-year waiting period after competing for the previous country..