Jonnie Peacock urges Lord Coe to include Para athletics in Diamond League meets

Double Paralympic champion Jonnie Peacock demanded Lord Sebastian Coe help facilitate greater exposure for Para athletics as he defiantly responded to finishing fifth in Paris.

Peacock failed to secure an individual medal at the Games for the first time after clocking 10.91 seconds in a thrilling T64 100m final at Stade de France.

The 31-year-old name-checked World Athletics president Lord Coe as he called for his event to be included on the programme of future Diamond League meets.

World Athletics are a separate entity to World Para Athletics, while the schedules for Diamond League meetings are down to individual operators.

“This is a race that I think people want to see,” said Peacock. “And this is a race that I think is exciting. It’s a race that chops and changes.

“Seb Coe, I need you, we need you. And we need you to put us in the actual Diamond League.

“Not a cheerleader event, not five minutes before the cameras turn on, but when the cameras are on. We need to be visible.

“Paralympics, we need to stop letting it die. We’ve let it die over a few years.

“So much of the media at the moment would argue about visibility representation.

“Well, then, where are we? Where are we in the Diamond Leagues? I’ve been calling on this for how many years now? 12 years? Not once in 12 years have we been in the programme. Why?

“I want to go into the Diamond Leagues. And I think it’s about time.”

Gold went to Costa Rica’s Sherman Guity in a Paralympic record time of 10.65 seconds, with Italian world champion Maxcel Amo Manu taking silver and Germany defending champion Felix Streng completing the podium.

Streng’s compatriot Johannes Floors, with whom Peacock shared bronze at Tokyo 2020, finished fourth.

Peacock’s personal best of 10.64 secs, registered back in 2017, would have been sufficient for the title.

“I am better than these people,” said the 31-year-old, who won T44 gold in London and Rio. “It’s me versus me. I’ve got in my own way.

“It’s not that these guys have beaten me. I’ve beaten myself this year. 2017 Jonnie would have wiped the floor with these boys.”