Three-time champion left out of Ethiopia Olympic squad

Kenenisa Bekele, who has won three Olympic gold medals, has not been shortlisted to represent his country at the forthcoming Tokyo Games after he boycotted local trials in May.

He has not commented on the decision by Ethiopia's athletics body.

Kenenisa has previously accused some people of working against his selection and said he was unhappy about the timing of the trials.

A BBC team who visited Ethiopian athletes earlier this week in the capital, Addis Ababa, did not seen him among the team.

Ethiopia’s marathon team will be led by Shura Kitata, who outran Kenya’s Eluid Kipchoge to win the London marathon in October 2020.

Kenenisa Bekele is the second-fastest marathon runner of all timeImage caption: Kenenisa Bekele is the second-fastest marathon runner of all time

The selection for Ethiopia's Olympic team, especially the marathon, has been a thorny issue.

Its president Ashebir Wolde Giorgis told journalists the final shortlist will be announced next week.

He said the final decision would be made by the national technical committee, a group which consists of coaches and veteran athletes.

"We don’t have to worry much as we will be sending an athlete who is capable of representing Ethiopia,"’ he told reporters.

This article originally appeared on BBC News

Photo: Getty Images