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Whelpton: Commonwealth Games exposes flaw in NZ selection system
Sport Nation • July 31st, 2026 2:18 pm
Tiaan Whelpton | Photo: Joel Carrett/Photosport
New Zealand sprinter Tiaan Whelpton believes the Commonwealth Games has exposed a flaw in the country’s selection system, stating several Kiwi athletes who could have been competitive on the world stage were left watching from home.
Whelpton’s fastest time of the year was 10.01 seconds with wind assist and 10.10 without, but to qualify for the Games, he needed to run under 10.00 seconds, leaving him ineligible for Glasgow.
Despite falling just short of the required mark, 22-year-old Whelpton told Sport Nation’s Millsy & Guy he's "in the best form of my life at the moment".
“I've just come fresh with an amazing season where I've run multiple national records, performed really well at world indoor champs, world relay champs, PBs all over the show, absolutely trending upwards, but unfortunately we're just dealing with really tough standards in this country," he said.
Tiaan Whelpton | Photo: Joel Carrett/Photosport
Whelpton said the standards appear to be based on a broad policy designed to prioritise athletes capable of finishing in the top six.
However, he believes the approach does not always reflect the reality of who actually competes at the Commonwealth Games.
“It's all based off of a blanket policy in which they are trying to prioritise people they believe can finish top six and that's across all sports and events, as far as I understand.
“They looked at the top six athletes in the Commonwealth and the times they're running and basically based it off that and that sounds like it should work, but unfortunately I think most of those athletes they based it off didn't even show up to the Commonwealth Games, so there's a bit of a flaw in that,” he explained.
“The standard was 10(s) flat. That's what they wanted me to run. That was the A standard. That is a time that would have won every Commonwealth Games for the last 24 years up until today.
“It was a time that was equal with the Olympic standard and unfortunately that's what I had to try and produce to go and that's tough, especially when we're dealing with winds and we're dealing with tough conditions.
Tiaan Whelpton | Photo: Shane Wenzlick/Photosport
“I'm not here to complain. I'm just here to state facts and like I said, if any of the facts I share upsets any people or organisations, then they should probably look introspectively as to why that is.”
Whelpton said the required standard made selection extremely difficult, especially given the conditions sprinters often face when trying to chase qualifying times.
“It is tough because I do believe I could have gone over there and been competitive.”
“I think I would have at least made the semi-final and you never know when you're in a big race like that and you're on the world stage as Zoe's just proved, you can pull something out of the bag, you can run a PB and you can surprise a few people but that's impossible if you're not there.”
Whelpton said watching Zoe Hobbs create history in the 100m was both emotional and inspiring, especially given the doubts she had previously faced in her own sprinting career.
“I think Zoe said it all in the interview afterwards anyway, if you watch any of the interviews, I think it was the first thing she said when she got on the mic about how she was sat down and told she should consider taking up another event because 100 metres is too deep and according to her graphs, she'd never make it.
“Yet there she was, winning a gold medal.
“I don't think there's anything that could possibly be more inspirational for me right now than to hear and see that.”
Whelpton also pointed to his friend Edward Nketia representing Australia, who had a similar qualification profile but was selected and went on to finish sixth.
“Eddie's best time within the qualification period is the exact same as my best time in the qualification, both of us had run a legal 10.10 within the qualification.
“Australia has chosen to send him, and good on him, he's actually placed top six, but unfortunately if you were still representing New Zealand I'd hate to say it, but they probably still wouldn't have sent him, he'd be in the same boat as I am.”
And despite being born in South Africa, Whelpton said his commitment remains firmly with New Zealand.
“I'm with the black singlet. That's where I want to be.
“Even if I wanted to defect, it's not quite that simple. There's a three year stand down period, so let's say I wanted it to go run for Australia as well. I would have to not compete internationally for three years and so that's not really an option for me, even if I wanted to, because that means I'm going to miss the next Olympics.
“I want to keep competing and I want to be the first Kiwi to break the 10-second barrier and I want to be the first male 100-metre sprinter for New Zealand at the Olympics in a long time.”
Athletics NZ boss hails Zoe Hobbs' historic 100m triumph | Sport Nation
Whelpton said he is not the only New Zealand athlete who could have been competitive if selected, naming several others who also missed out.
Tommy Te Puni, who achieved a national 200 metre record this year, along with Lex Revell-Lewis, the 400 metre national record holder as well as the national long jump champion Shay Veitch.
“So there's quite a few of us who are sitting here watching at home feeling like if we were over there we absolutely could have been competitive.”
“There's a little more Kiwis I think than the general public realises that could be very competitive at a meat like that if they were just allowed to go.”
Listen to the full interview below:
