BOLTON Commonwealth Games hero Stuart Stokes has branded his exclusion from Great Britain's European Championship squad as 'crazy' writes Chris Hall

The steeplechaser looked certain to force his way into Team GB after shaving seven seconds off his personal best to take an impressive fourth place in Saturday's final at the City of Manchester Stadium.

His time of 8mins 26secs met the UK Athletics qualification standard and earned him a place in the top ten fastest Europeans, but UKA bosses have refused to add him to the squad, claiming he missed the selection deadline by just four days.

Instead, Great Britain will have no runners in the 3,000 metres steeplechase in Munich next week.

"It's crazy. After that time, I'm ranked in the top ten in Europe but I will probably not be going to the European Championships," said Stokes.

"There's no-one else in the country who has got within 15 seconds of the qualifying time. There's only me who has got it in an event.

"I've had a meeting with UK Athletics and they are going to put my case forward to the committee but I'm not too confident that anything will come of it.

"They have made exceptions in special circumstances in the past but I don't know whether I can get in that way.

"It's very frustrating. About eight other athletes, who are in the squad, have all told me they haven't met their qualifying time. It seems they are more lenient in some events than others."

The UKA defended their stance, citing Stokes' decision to withdraw from the European Championship qualifiers to concentrate on Manchester 2002.

"At the time of selecting the squad, Stuart did not have the UK Athletics qualifying standard," said spokesperson Emily Lewis.

"Going into the Games, he had not recorded the qualifying time and one of the criteria for selection was that all athletes must attend the AAAs Championships."

Stokes' English team-mates have rallied round the former Bolton Harrier, who must now harness his frustration for this summer's remaining meetings.

"Every English athlete who saw that race have told me it was a great peformance and that I should do well in Munich," he said.

"It's great that not just distance runners but sprinters and throwers have all come up and given me their support.

"It would mean a lot to me to compete in Munich. Even if I didn't get a medal, I would just be very proud to race there and to keep my place in Europe's top ten.

"The only positive thing if I don't go is that I'm in good shape for the World Cup in September. That will be another big meeting for me and I will just have to re-focus for that."