Sheikh Talal bin Mohammed al-Khalifa (left)

The Kenyan-born athletes who changed their citizenship to run for Bahrain are now up in arms and threatens to quit if the head of Bahrain Athletics Association, Sheikh Talal bin Mohammed al-Khalifa, is not removed.

The furor stems from the Sheikh Talal who is the brother of Bahraini chief of state, King Hamad bin Isa al-Khalifa, and Prime Minister Khalifa bin Salman al-Khalifa, who has been accused of holding out on bonuses and prize money for eight months.

Sheikh Talal has also been deemed rude and giving preferential treatment, such as committing more time and focus on more established athletes such as Olympic 1500m champion Rashid Ramzy and World 1500m champion Maryam Jamal. Both are Moroccan and Ethiopian respectively before deciding to run for Bahrain.

One of the Kenyan-born athletes Youssef Saad Kamel has accused the Bahrain Athletics Association of breach of contract and is seeking to change his citizenship back to Kenyan again. He plans to compete at the World Championships in Berlin next year for Kenya.

Another four Kenyan-born athletes who remains anonymous for fear of reprisal has support Youssef Saad Kamel claims.