High-profile hurdler Michelle Jenneke arrived in Rio out of shape and needs to make athletics a higher priority if she wants to continue being funded and to make it at the world level, Australian head coach Craig Hilliard said in a sharp rebuke.
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The dancing hurdler, who was one of the international faces of Coca-Cola, said after her elimination in the heats that athletics was only one priority in her life.
In a stinging review of performances, Hilliard said Jenneke was among a group of athletes who had under-performed in Rio.
"There are a lot of things that will come up in the review, I don't really want to mention a lot of stuff about athletes but she was certainly one of the athletes that underperformed here," Hilliard said.
When asked if she was distracted by the world attention her modelling, TV ads, and pre-race dancing attracted Hilliard agreed.
"It would be easy to suggest that was possibly a scenario," he said.
"It's something that I need to discuss with her and go through with her, with her program. She certainly didn't arrive here in the shape she should have arrived in."
Jenneke said after her heat that she had a range of things going on in her life and that running was not her only priority which, in the broad view, was a balanced perspective. But, in light of her physical shape and fitness as a funded athlete arriving for the once-in-four-years biggest sporting event in the world, it was a surprising self-analysis.
Asked if that troubled him Hilliard replied: "Absolutely, because it comes to the end of the day and well, it's not a priority, it's about balance. If it's not a priority then why are we funding athletes?
"It's simple, if you are going to be half-baked at doing something, why are we investing in you? I can't justify that."
