Commonwealth Games: Cairns Judo competitor Sebastian Temesi dropped from team
A Cairns athlete ranked number 1 in Australia at the time of his selection into a Commonwealth Games team has slammed his sport’s governing body for an error that’s cost him his dream.
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A CAIRNS athlete ranked number 1 in Australia at the time of his selection into the Commonwealth Games team has slammed his sport’s governing body for its incompetence after his heartbreaking deselection.
Talented Judo fighter Sebastian Temesi was just weeks out from realising a lifelong dream of representing Australia at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, set to begin on July 28.
But on Thursday, he was notified that he had been deselected from the team in what has been labelled as an “embarrassing” administration error by Judo Australia.
Temesi who would’ve competed in the under 90kg division was among eight male athletes, including competitors in other weight classes to be selected for Australia.
The 10-time Australian champion said in mid-June, Judo Australia informed its squad that it was only actually permitted to send seven men, and someone would be dropped, which was then confirmed to be the Cairns-based athlete, but the manner in which he found out shattered the former number 1 judoka.
“They didn’t tell me why, they didn’t tell me anything really. I heard it all from other people,” Temesi said.
“Everyone else from the Judo community and all over were messaging me ‘sorry about the decision, sorry you’re not going’ before it was even official, before I even found out myself.”
Temesi’s coach Xavier Barker attempted to appeal the decision but said it was quickly dismissed. Mr Barker said it wasn’t the first time Judo Australia had unfairly treated Temesi.
“In March (at a pre-games event) they sanctioned him for not bowing before leaving the mat, that should be a warning but they docked him points which dropped him to third ranked. Because of that he missed out on an event at Peru,” he said.
“Even with the games, they excluded him from the team announcement event, from media opportunities and now they’ve cut him while they’re sending other athletes who are carrying injuries.”
At 32, Temesi who has also recently been competing in mixed martial arts cage fights said he would need to re-evaluate his alliance with Judo Australia and prepare for the Paris 2024 Olympics.
“This was my dream, I’ve done world championships, but Olympics and Commonwealth Games. This is what I’ve fought for my whole life, I started Judo as a kid when I was six, seven-years-old,” he said.
“This isn’t just a hobby, I have 26 years of effort and training in this, waking up everyday, mostly training twice a day, self-funded.”
In a public statement released on Sunday, Judo Australia apologised to Temesi for the error.
“Judo Australia and the Combat Institute of Australia regrettably advise that due to an error in the nomination and Commonwealth Games Australia selection process relating to gender quotas for the Judo Commonwealth Games Australia team, Sebastian Temesi will not be competing at the 2022 Birmingham Commonwealth Games,” the statement read.
“We apologise for the significant disappointment this causes Sebastian and the judo community.”
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Originally published as Commonwealth Games: Cairns Judo competitor Sebastian Temesi dropped from team
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