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Kenyans order Konchella to return home

Olympics: Kenyan athletics officials in Australia for the Sydney Olympics have ordered their 800 metres Commonwealth champion…

Tue Sept 05 2000 - 01:00

Olympics: Kenyan athletics officials in Australia for the Sydney Olympics have ordered their 800 metres Commonwealth champion Patrick Konchella to return home.

Tom Omuombo, secretary-general of Kenya's national Olympic committee, said yesterday that Konchella had an "undisclosed medical complication."

Linford Christie, the 1992 Olympic 100 metre champion, arrived in Australia yesterday to coach a group of British athletes at next week's Games.

But Christie said he would only coach his athletes while they were at their Queensland training camp and would not travel with them to Sydney to shield them from the "media circus" likely to surround his presence in Sydney.

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Christie, the 1993 world champion, withdrew his application for accreditation two weeks ago when the International Amateur Athletic Federation (IAAF) suspended him for two years for testing positive for the anabolic steroid nandrolone.

Olympic pursuit champion Andrea Collinelli will not be competing in Sydney after failing a dope test during the Italian championships in July, Italian Olympic Committee (CONI) president Gianni Petrucci confirmed yesterday.

Motor Sport: Thousands of motor racing enthusiasts flocked to Donington Park on Sunday to celebrate Jordan's 10 years in Formula One. They were treated to track action from Jordan drivers Heinz-Harald Frentzen and Jarno Trulli.

Jordan's founder and chief executive, Eddie Jordan, who brought the team into Formula One said: "I never dreamed of a celebration like this. When my marketing team came to me with the idea of celebrating our first 10 years in this way, I had my doubts. But I must say it was the most amazing event - quite an emotional experience."

Canoeing: There was disappointment for Gary Mawer, but a gold medal for Eileen Murphy (43) in the masters event and a very creditable showing in the top 10 for junior Neil Fleming at the World Marathon Championships in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, at the weekend. K1 competitor Mawer was disqualified for taking the wrong course at a portage, where the boat has to be carried.