The USATF and the U20 Championships in Peru controversy added another feather recently. Back in April 2024, the USATF stated that they would not be sending their athletes to the U20 Championships which was scheduled to take place from August 26 in Peru. While elaborating on the factors they have taken into consideration, the USATF mentioned that the safety of the athletes was unassuming. This was due to the current civil unrest in the area. 

However, soon after the decision was made public, large groups of people started bashing the USATF. They stated that such a decision reflected a backward mentality. The USATF was also accused of depriving young athletes of a fair shot at potential greatness. With the debates getting elevated, the recent update would now surely put the smiles back on the faces of the budding athletes. 

Team USA is now part of the U20 Championships to go to Peru

In what was a complete change of mind, USATF has finally agreed to allow their U20 team to travel to Peru. The news was conveyed by an X account named Chris Chavez. The tweet read, “After talks with World Athletics and the local organizing committee in Lima, Peru, USATF has changed its mind and will send a U20 team to the 2024 World U20 Championships in August. Last month, they announced they would not send a team “after careful consideration concerning both the domestic & international athletics calendar, consultation amongst the internal team, advice of security consultants and relevant government authorities.”

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The final statement from the USATF mentioned that it had conducted extensive meetings with both World Athletics and the local committee. It was only after they got the green signal on the safety concerns, USATF gave the nod. However, the statement also clarified that there was no room for complacency.

The USATF will be closely monitoring the situation and how exactly the safety of their team is being looked after. They also mentioned that they will announce the team after the conclusion of the USATF U20 Championships in June. While this is a welcome decision, several well-known personalities expressed their discontent about USATF’s earlier stance. This included the likes of Justin Gatlin and Michael Johnson. 

Micahel Johnson and Justin Gatlin previously did not approve of USATF’s decision 

Justin Gatlin has always been an advocate of allowing the youth to express themselves. Naturally, when USATF decided to put a stop to that, it left Gatlin unimpressed. Reflecting on the situation, the Olympian stated, “I say this because, if you read the news, they canceled the Lima Under-20 championships. And once again, I think in our sport, that’s definitely an injustice coz now you have robbed a generation of athletes to prep themselves to get ready for that next level, you know what I mean?” 

Echoing similar sentiments, Michael Johnson raised the question of whether the track and field world was in danger. He cited the examples of the UK being reluctant to send athletes to championship events. Also, the Commonwealth Games struggling to find a host. And Colombia losing its rights to host the 2027 Pan American Games. A concerned Johnson tweeted, “Is the track & field global champs model in trouble?” Thus, with several dark clouds looming, the latest developments are surely a breath of fresh air. Now, the entire Track community will hope to build on from here and drive the lurking doubts into oblivion.