World body to investigate Cook's 2012 exile

The row over European taekwondo champion Aaron Cook's failure to be selected for the British Olympic team escalated Thursday when the sport's global governing body announced a review into the issue.

GB Taekwondo's repeated failure to nominate Cook has been one of the more baffling controversies in the run-up to the London Olympics.

British taekwondo chiefs have insisted they have good reasons for opting to put forward Lutalo Muhammad, who would have to drop down a weight division, ahead of Cook in the under-80kgs category and that much of the criticism they have since faced is ill-informed. Cook, the world number one in his weight class, still has a hope of competing at the Games because the British Olympic Association have refused to ratify the nomination of Muhammad.

The BOA requested another selection panel meeting, with an independent observer present. But, having held such a meeting on Wednesday, GB Taekwondo refused to change their original decision.

And that meant Cook, who won a second successive European title last month, had missed out on selection for this Olympics for the third time.

Following that decision, the WTF announced Thursday they would be reviewing GB Taekwondo's selection process.

"We are extremely disappointed by the way in which British Taekwondo's selection process has been conducted and it is clear that the lack of a conclusive rationale has caused confusion," said WTF secretary general Jean-Marie Ayer in a statement.

"The manner of the selection is bringing our sport into disrepute among the UK media and major Olympic stakeholders due to a perceived lack of transparency.

"Our main concern is always that every athlete is given fair and equal consideration -- their welfare must come first. "We at the WTF have done our utmost to bring fair practices and transparency to our sport and that is why we have committed to undertaking this review." Ayer added a WTF review of itself could not reverse Cook's omission but would determine if GB Taekwondo had broken WTF rules.

Following Ayer's comments, the BOA's qualification standards panel said it would consult with the WTF and the BOA board of directors on Friday before making its final decision as "quickly as possible thereafter". Muhammad has received hate mail -- something Cook's agent, Jamie Cunningham, deplored in a statement issued Wednesday where he said it would be a "national disgrace" if his client did not compete at London 2012.

"Aaron is ranked number one in the world and Olympic rankings because he is the best taekwondo athlete at his weight class in the world," Cunningham said. "These are all facts, not opinion." Cook, 21, believes his decision to drop out of GB Taekwondo's elite training programme and go it alone has counted against him.

But British taekwondo world champion Sarah Stevenson, set to compete at her fourth Olympics, is among those who have defended the selection policy. AFP