Nyambui, the 1980 Olympic 5,000 metres silver medallist, said: "We were supposed to start training two years ago, nevertheless, we failed because we had no funds.

"This time, we have no means as well to turn the clock around.

"Having not assembled does not mean that the athletes have slept, they are still training under their own respective coaches, aiming for triumph at [the] qualifying series."

Tanzania failed to make an impact at the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games and are threatening to repeat that showing in London.

Only one athlete, 27-year-old Zakia Mrisho, has so far qualified for the 2012 Games after she reached the final of the 5,000m at the World Athletics Championships in Daegu last year.

"We are proud of Zakia's success," said Nyambui.

"[Tanzania] would have liked to have many athletes with London Games tickets by now, but it's impossible because [it] does not have enough cash to facilitate them."

Tanzania made its Olympic debut at Tokyo in 1964 and has competed in every Games since with the exception of Montreal in 1976 when they joined the African boycott in protest over a tour by the New Zealand All Blacks rugby team to South Africa, which was banned at the time.

That robbed the country of arguably its best-ever chance of an Olympic gold medal as Filbert Bayi was the world 1500m record holder and favourite for the title. 

In Bayi's absence, the title went ironically to New Zealand's John Walker, who Bayi had beaten in an epic race at the Commonwealth Games in Christchurch in 1974. 


Bayi (pictured above) did compete in Moscow four years later and won a silver medal in the 3,000m steeplecahse, joining Nyambui as one of only two Tanzanian's to claim Olympic medals. 

Bayi is now the secretary general of the Tanzania Olympic Committee. 

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