Former sprinter Darren Campbell has warned British competitors against making "excuses" after five overseas-born athletes were made eligible for Team GB.
Emerging sprint star Zharnel Hughes, who finished second to Usain Bolt in the 200m at the Diamond League in New York earlier this month, was among those to be cleared by British Athletics. The 19-year-old is from the Caribbean island of Anguilla, which is not recognised by the IOC, freeing him up to compete for Britain.
Also cleared were 100 metres hurdler Cindy Ofili, high jumper Victoria Dronsfield, 400m hurdler Shante Little and 400m runner Montene Speight.
British sprinter Richard Kilty expressed his frustration at the announcement on Twitter. He wrote, "Good for fans to see home grown talent representing GB... oh wait...", and claimed "all sprinters I've spoken to in the team feel exactly the same", before deleting both tweets.
But former Olympic relay gold medallist Campbell told the BBC: "When you hear of a young sprinter, 19, who's run a time of 20.15 [seconds for the 200m] and been labelled the next Usain Bolt, that is going to spread fear among the sprinters.
"If his potential is realised, he's going to run crazy times like 19.6, 19.7. Straight away that is going to block paths for the other sprinters and their chances of representing Great Britain. But your mindset has to change. It's too easy to use that as an excuse."
Hughes is already targeting the World Championships in Beijing. The teenager, who has held a British passport since birth, beat Jamaican sprinter Yohan Blake's 100m junior record with a time of 10.12 seconds in March last year.
"The target is the Olympic Games for sure but right now I am focusing on the World Championships," he told the BBC. "Execution is key all the time for me. I want to get to the World Championship and get my times."
Ofili has held dual nationality since birth like her older sister Tiffany Porter, whose switch of allegiance from the United States in 2010 caused controversy.
"It has always been my intention to opt for GB, especially having seen my sister compete for Team GB in the London Olympics," she told the British Athletics website. "I just hope to be good enough to now earn the right to be selected based on my performances."
Dronsfield recently moved from Sweden to train in Britain while Little and Speight have switched from the United States.