There is doubt whether Jamaican horizontal jumper Carey McLeod will be eligible to participate in the Olympic Games, which start today in Tokyo, Japan, after news broke yesterday that he had tested positive for the novel coronavirus.

McLeod, who had an outstanding year at the University of Tennessee, was the only man to qualify for both the long and triple jumps.

He had finished second in the long jump at the Jamaica Athletics Administrative Association (JAAA) National Senior Championships last month and third in the triple jump to secure spots in both events in Tokyo.

A source close to the situation, but who asked not to be identified, told the Jamaica Observer yesterday that the former Garvey Maceo and Kingston College athlete had started his journey to Japan when he got news of his positive test.

The source expressed confidence that the positive test might not mean the end of McLeod’s Olympic dreams, but did not say what the protocols were that will be taken moving forward.

Efforts by the Observer to get information from the JAAA and the Jamaica Olympic Association last night proved futile.

McLeod achieved his rare feat of qualifying for both events after he jumped 17.17m in the triple jump during the indoor season, and then jumped 8.34m during the outdoor season — both of which are Tennessee programme records.

He won three South East Conference (SEC) titles this year, the indoor long jump and outdoor long and triple, and was second in the indoors triple jump.

McLeod was third in both the NCAA Indoors Championships long and triple jump and at the outdoors nationals he was seventh in the triple jump and third in the long jump.

— Paul A Reid