In the span of a few months, four major Jamaican track and field talents, Wayne Pinnock (long jump silver, Paris 2024), Jaydon Hibbert (world U20 triple jump record-holder), Roje Stona (Paralympic discus champion), and Rajindra Campbell (shot-put bronze, Paris 2024) are all in talks of adopting the Turkish allegiance. The shockwaves have reached deep into Kingston: the JAAA is preparing a protest to World Athletics, decrying what some officials call a strategic “brain drain” by Turkey. However, not everyone sees this as a betrayal.
Olympic champion and podcast host Justin Gatlin has come out strongly in support of Jamaican field athletes switching allegiance to Turkey. Speaking on his podcast Ready Set Go, co-hosted with Rodney Green, Gatlin addressed the controversy head-on. When Green raised the topic, Gatlin didn’t hesitate: “I’m for the athletes 100%. We are for the athletes—yes, we are for the athletes 100%. I mean, at the end of the day, it’s the fact that athletes have one career, that’s it, you know.” He emphasized the importance of financial backing, professional environments, and long-term security, things many athletes struggle to access through their home federations.
Gatlin expanded his point, adding: “You have to make the best of your career. And if you know that you are a talent who can showcase your ability to the world and be one of the people who stand on top of a podium, that means you’re in a very small percentage of people who can be successful in the world, right? So with that being said, if I’m an athlete in that situation, I’m going to go—I’m going to switch—because it’s going to be lucrative for me. At the end of the day, all my hard work is going to legitimately pay off.” It’s hard to argue when you look at the talent: Pinnock has multiple global medals and an 8.54 m personal best in the long jump. Hibbert holds the world U20 triple jump record. Stona smashed the Olympic record with a 70 m discus throw, and Campbell made history with a 22.31 m national record and Olympic bronze in shot put.
Gatlin further noted that the move offers more than money, it provides dignity and professional care: “You’re going to feel that you are being appreciated, because you’re being taken care of like a professional athlete. And this is one of the things we talk about in our sport—the fact that we say we’re professional, but there’s still a lot in our sport that’s done very amateur-like. And now, there’s no knock towards Jamaica or the federation or anything like that. We don’t know what’s going on behind the scenes, behind closed doors, if there’s enough money to be dispersed to appease the athletes they do have, you know what I mean? So we don’t know that.” But what the track and field athletes themselves are starting to share paints a clearer picture.
Shot putter Rajindra Campbell went public in June 2025, saying the JAAA turned down a major Adidas deal on his behalf, choosing the federation’s own sponsors over the athlete’s career. “There were bonuses that would have benefited the athlete, not the Federation… They made the decision kinda easy,” he said on Coach’s Desk (June 24, 2025). Insiders claim the JAAA has long focused resources on sprinters, leaving throwers and jumpers unsupported. Athletes cite poor infrastructure, lack of monthly stipends, no injury coverage, and fear of speaking out due to possible retaliation.
In contrast, reports show Turkey offered eight-year contracts worth $500,000 each, with $30,000 monthly stipends and championship bonuses up to $1 million, a system that treats track and field athletes as professionals. Even with these moves progressing, it seems the JAAA won’t let them go.
Jamaica pushes back against track and field athlete switch
What happens when a nation’s best track and field athletes are courted by foreign federations offering millions? That’s the uncomfortable question facing Jamaican athletics right now. The Jamaican Athletics Administrative Association (JAAA), alarmed by a wave of high-profile athlete transfers, is preparing to take its case to the World Athletics Congress in Tokyo later this year. “It will be raised,” a senior official told Television Jamaica. “We’re putting it in black and white.” According to the JAAA, the growing trend poses a threat not just to Jamaica but to the very fabric of global athletics.
“This can destroy the sport,” the official warned. The JAAA plans to present a written submission in Tokyo, pressing World Athletics to confront what they see as an ethical and structural crisis. But is this just business, or is it a deeper betrayal of national development? So far, the JAAA says it hasn’t received official word from the athletes or the Turkish federation, yet it’s bracing for impact. “Jamaica’s voice will be heard,” a spokesperson said, comparing the situation to a “brain drain in teaching.”
First Vice President Ian Forbes didn’t mince words, accusing Turkey of systematic recruitment and calling the moves a direct hit to Jamaica’s long-term investments in track and field. As the JAAA readies its case, it’s not just fighting for four athletes—it’s fighting to protect a system built on grassroots development, national pride, and fair competition. With murmurs that other federations feel the same, this could spark a global reckoning: Should talent be bought, or built?
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