Jamaican and global sprint great Asafa Powell has become among the top trending topics on Twitter following the bombshell of the reported switching allegiance of a handful of the country’s top field athletes on Thursday.

According to reports, at least four Global medalists, including Olympic Games Shot Put champion Rojae Stona, Long Jump silver medalist Wyane Pinnock, among others, have started the process to become Turkish citizens due to the attractive performance incentives offered to representatives of the European country.

As news filtered online and reaction gathered, Powell also became a popular reference among the online discourse as people noted his controversial and what now seems to be a prophetic stance on Jamaican representation by athletes, given the seemingly fragile financial support for the sport compared to other countries.

He made those bold claims in a viral social media post earlier this year, where he emphatically and frankly declared his support for his son to represent other countries if the current structure remains, should they take on track and field due to the lack of financial support compared to other less successful athletic nations. He also expressed his remorse at turning down lucrative opportunities to represent other countries in favour of building National pride and patriotism.

Given the reports of the massive multimillion-dollar financial gains offered by foreign countries, in addition to bonuses, and the reports of talent migration of Jamaica’s top field athletes. It again sparked a massive conversation about the value of Patriotism vs Profit and how it applies to the modern era.