Husband backs administrator Bates over Olympics errors

The "distraught" Olympics official that almost cost Valerie Adams a place in the Olympic shot put should not be blacklisted for her mistake, her husband says. Photo / Mark Mitchell.

The "distraught" Olympics official under fire for her role in the fiasco that almost cost Valerie Adams a place in the Olympic shot put should not be blacklisted for her mistake, her husband says.

Raylene Bates has been named by New Zealand chef de mission Dave Currie as the person at fault for the clerical error that led to Adams' name being left off the start list for the event. Adams finished second behind biggest rival Nadzeya Ostapchuk of Belarus.

Craig Bates said his wife did not want a drawn-out inquiry into who was responsible. She quickly admitted her mistake and took responsibility for the error.

He had a long talk to his wife in the early hours of this morning. "Raylene's made an honest mistake and she admits to it," Craig Bates told the Otago Daily Times.

"She was terribly distraught about it all."

Raylene Bates has been a coach and sports administrator for more than 20 years and is noted for her attention to detail.

"Raylene's impeccable with all her administration," her husband said.

"She's made an honest mistake. She admits to it. Raylene's incredibly passionate about the sport. She has done this work voluntarily for years."

Raylene Bates, a life member of Athletics Otago, is section manager of the athletics team at the London Olympics. She filled the same role in Beijing in 2008 and also at the Delhi Commonwealth Games two years ago.

She is a successful coach of throwing events and will fill this role at the Paralympics, starting in London when the Olympics finish.

Craig Bates said his wife was well liked by the athletes, who made a special request to the New Zealand Olympic Committee to have her appointed to the position for London.

Adams was not the only New Zealand athlete's name left off a start list at this Olympics, with the forms of 1500m runner Lucy van Dalen, decathlete Brent Newdick, javelin thrower Stuart Farquhar and 50km walker Quentin Rew also incorrectly filled out.

Boxes which required the word "yes" to be inserted were completed for the first group of athletes but left blank - indicating those athletes would not compete - for the other New Zealanders, including Adams.

Currie said he had quizzed Bates on what happened.

"There's no explicable, understandable, rational reason," he said in a press conference.

"I've talked to her at length about that. She can't recall any reason. In her own mind she was sure she'd done it. You look at the forms and they're not done."

He described Bates, who has attended several Olympic and Commonwealth Games in the role, as "very effective and efficient".

Currie, who is overseeing his final Games as team boss, accepted that "all things that happen in the team ultimately I am responsible for" but admitted he had not checked off the entries himself, and defended himself on that score.