Paralympic long jump champion Markus Rehm has accepted his exclusion from August’s European Atheltics Championships after being omitted from the Germany team but hopes to be selected for future events.
“The European Championships in Zurich is not a topic for me any more,” Rehm told broadcaster ARD yesterday. He added that he had “respect” for those named on the team and would “be fair.”
“I will not take any legal action but I’ll take every opportunity to prove I have no advantage,” Rehm said at a later press conference.
The 25-year-old Rehm, who has a prosthetic right leg below the knee, has urged further analysis which may allow him to compete with able-bodied athletes in the future.
Rehm won the long jump at the German national championships, and achieved the European qualifying standard, with a lead of 8.24 metres, was not nominated for Zurich by the German Athletics Federation (DLV).
The basis for the DLV decision was biomechanical measurements at the national championships. But both Rehm and experts believe these investigations are insufficient to return a fair verdict.
Further tests are also important to Rehm to validate his national victory.
“If it is proved to me that I had an advantage through the prosthesis, I’ll allow all distances to be removed from the records and I’ll give the title back,” he said.
Clemens Prokop, DLV president, said that there will be a meeting between the joint working group of the DLV and the German Disabled Sports Association (DBS) in early September to discuss the issue.
“The dialogue with the DBS continues,” Prokop said. “In the Rehm case further studies will be sought.”
The International Paralympic Committee (IPC) was relaxed about the DLV decision and praised Rehm for winning the national championship.
“This is not a setback for the Paralympic movement. Our events are constantly growing, both in quality and in size,” IPC spokesman Craig Spence told DPA. “Markus is a fantastic athlete and his performance was impressive.”