BREAKING: Sachin Dennis to switch allegiance?

As the search continues for Jamaica's next set of great male sprinters, one outstanding junior athlete may not be among them. RJR Sports understands that St Elizabeth Technical star sprinter Sachin Dennis is in the process of switching  allegiance to represent the country of Bahrain, but against the wishes of one of his parents.

Dennis who won the Class 3 sprint double as well as the 100 meters twice in Class 2 at “Boys Champs” has not raced competitively since 2018. That year his winning time of 10.20 seconds for the Class 2 boys 100 meters was faster than the 10.24 posted by Calabar's Tyreke Wilson to win Class 1. Dennis was also touted in 2017 as the fastest 15 year old in the world. 

There have been talks of injury since 2018 but even more eye opening has been a revelation to RJR Sports that Dennis is being courted by Bahrain for a move to represent that country but that it's being done in a controversial manner.

RJR Sports travelled to the district of Giddy Hall in Dennis' home parish of St Elizabeth to speak with his mother Claudette Anderson who has expressed hurt and disagreement with how the matter is being handled by his coach at STETHS Reynaldo Walcott and his father Dalfry Dennis.

But with the parents no longer in a relationship, Dennis' mother says she is being kept away from her son and is in the dark about his future. But it was not always so, as she actually attended a meeting to discuss him running for another country.

She adds that she later told coach Walcott she did not agree and that she would prefer for him to represent Jamaica. Anderson says she has been in the dark since then, but revealed that Sachin has actually travelled to Bahrain

Efforts by RJR Sports to get a comment from Sachin's father were unsuccessful. RJR Sports also went to STETHS to find out from coach Walcott if Dennis was being prepared to represent Bahrain. However, he refused to comment on the record, noting it was not in the  best interest of the athlete for him to do so.

We also caught up with STETHS' principal Keith Wellington who while not denying the matter and also declining to comment on the record, noted he could not comment on the private life of a student.

Meanwhile, when contacted by phone, Dr Warren Blake, the president of track and field's local governing body, the JAAA , said  they had not been approached about Dennis switching allegiance. However, he explained that as per IAAF rules, the athlete would have had to first represent Jamaica to need permission to compete for another country. Interestingly, Dennis has never represented Jamaica.