Ahmed Sule
Britain’s Cindy Sember and Japan’s Mako Fukube, who came
fourth and eighth respectively in the race, posted national records. In
response to the fast times, Cotter said, “Something is going on; we hope those
times in the first heat are correct. Everyone was running extraordinary fast in
the first heat.” He said, “We should highlight how quick the time has been and
hope that the timing is accurate.”
Michael Johnson dismissively said, “I am not believing these
times.” Cotter then asked Colin Jackson, the former 110 m World Champion, what
he thought about the race and Jackson replied, “It would be interesting that
the IAAF would have to ratify the record and check it quite intensely.” Cotter
said, “You want to believe this, but 12.12.” Steve Cram remarked, “I noticed
her reaction time was 0.144 and if you are shaving record, you have to have a
super-fast reaction time.” Michael Johnson said, “In order to break a record
you have to put everything. The margin is so big so the reaction time, leaning
has to happen before you break the record.” Cotter then said, “Cindy Sember has
qualified for the final. At least it is fair. If the timing is off, it is off
for everyone.” At the commencement of the final, Cotter said, “Whether the
timing is right or not and that will all be subject to be ratification, we have
the right athletes. Tobi Amusan was much quicker, whether that world record is
ratified or not.”
At the BBC studio, the pundits stated that Tobi Amusan would
have to back up her world-recording-breaking feat, but it would be challenging
for her as all eyes would be on her. In the final race, Tobi Amusan eventually
silenced her BBC critics by winning the final in 12.06 seconds.
The BBC’s response to Amusan’s feat contrasts sharply with
how the broadcaster responded to the other two world records broken during the
championship. When America’s Sydney McLaughlin crossed the finishing line in
50.68 seconds to break the women’s 400 m hurdles world record, nobody in the
BBC commentating team questioned the authenticity of the timing. Instead, as
she approached the finishing line, Andrew Cotter screamed, “Watch the clock!”
And after she won, “She smashes the world record. Incredible, 50.68 seconds.”
Cotter continued, “Unbelievable; she is unbeatable, but that
is a time; she would have got through the initial rounds of 400 m flat jumping
hurdles; she transcends the sports.” Michael Johnson remarked, “I am so excited
about it …50.68 is a great time for a flat 400 m runner …she has the ability to
hurdle well, so she is not off balance; that is why the time is so fast; she
has great speed and endurance.”
Similarly, when Armand “Mondo” Duplantis scaled the 6.21 m
hurdle to break the pole vault world record, there wasn’t a single moment of
doubt from the BBC commentators. Instead, the event commentator shouted, “The
flying Swede does it again. More magic from Mondo. This man was born to pole
vault; produces the highest pole ever seen. Incredible, extraordinary… Look how
high it is”
Malcolm X once said, “Of all our studies, history is best
qualified to reward our research.” One must look into the history book to
understand BBC’s shameful and unprofessional attitude towards Tobi Amusan. The
BBC Empire Service was formed in 1932 and served as the propaganda arm of the
British Empire.
Although BBC Empire Service has now been renamed BBC World
Service, BBC is yet to shake off the shackles of its colonial mind-set. When
one watches BBC during sporting competitions like the Olympics and World
Athletics Championship, one could get the impression that it is diverse,
especially when one sees the likes of Colin Jackson, Denise Lewis, Michael
Johnson, and Jeanette Kwayke. However, the presence of these black faces does
not erase the fact that BBC, including its sporting unit, is a neo-colonial
enterprise. During the championship, in addition to the three world records,
nine championship records were broken.
However, BBC questioned none of the records. So why the
uproar about Tobi Amusan’s record? Amusan’s victory was against the expectation
of the BBC commentators as she was competing for Nigeria in an event not
dominated by West Africans. Her performance did not fit the usual narrative of
East Africans dominating the middle distances and Americans and Jamaicans
dominating the sprint. In short, instead of “staying in her lane” by being a
fringe participant, she had the nerve to dominate and smash the world record
and make an American look ordinary.
The commentators could not hide their western arrogance
irrespective of their colour. Andrew Cotter’s joy when Cindy Sember qualified
is a classic manifestation of this arrogance. If Tobi Amusan had followed the
path of other sportsmen and women of Nigerian heritage such as Anthony Joshua,
Bukayo Saka, Christine Ohuruogu, and Daley Thompson in competing for Great
Britain, the probability of Johnson and Cotter questioning the world record
would have been almost zero.
BBC athletic commentators set invisible boundaries for who
they expect to excel in certain events. But when outsiders from these regions
dominate against their expectations, they often raise their colonial eyebrows.
For instance, when South Africa’s Caster Semenya began to dominate the 800 m at
the London and Rio Olympics, BBC’s Paula Radcliffe embarked on a personal
crusade to dehumanise her. So when you see the likes of Michael Johnson cast
aspersion on Amusan’s timing, one should not be surprised — he is just
manifesting what could be described as Anglo-American exceptionalism in black
face.
BBC’s ugly reaction to Tobi Amusan’s performance should
serve as a wake-up call to many middle-class Africans who often see western
news channels like the BBC and CNN as arbiters of truth. It is time to see them
for what they are: neo-colonial propaganda tools for western hegemony.
-Ahmed Sule is a public affairs analyst. He can be reached
on suleaos@gmail.com