World champion decathlete Pierce LePage won't compete at Canadian Olympic trials

World champion decathlete Pierce LePage has received a medical exemption and won't compete this week at the Canadian Olympic and Paralympic track and field trials. Lepage competes in the men's decathlon javelin throw at the World Athletics Championships in Doha, Qatar, Thursday, Oct. 3, 2019. THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP/David J. Phillip

MONTREAL — World champion decathlete Pierce LePage has received a medical exemption and won't compete this week at the Canadian Olympic and Paralympic track and field trials.

LePage, considered one of Canada's biggest podium contenders for this summer's Paris Games, won world championship gold last year and silver in 2022.

But the exemption raises concerns about his potential of going for gold in Paris after the 28-year-old from Whitby, Ont., also missed the Hypo Meeting in Götzis, Austria, in May.

Athletics Canada couldn't share the nature of LePage's exemption but said he's still aiming to compete at the Summer Olympics, which begin July 26.

High-performance director Simon Nathan said LePage's absence at the trials shouldn't affect his selection to Canada's Olympic team because he met the World Athletics entry standard and received an exemption to miss trials.

"He has both those things, so he's eligible for selection," Nathan said. "There's no automatic selection, but we're obliged to pick as many athletes as we can, so we're very, very likely to nominate him unless he withdraws himself, and that's absolutely not the case, he just is unable to compete at these championships."

Canada can send up to three decathletes to the Games and only LePage and reigning Olympic champion Damian Warner have met the World Athletics entry standard.

Athletes hoping to be nominated to the Canadian Olympic or Paralympic team must compete at trials but can receive a written medical exemption from the Athletics Canada Chief Medical Officer (CMO), which will only grant exemptions if the athlete has sustained an injury or illness.

The trials take place Wednesday through Sunday at Claude-Robillard sports complex. Warner will compete in the 400-metre, 110 hurdles and long jump this week.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 26, 2024.

Daniel Rainbird, The Canadian Press