Paris Olympics: Controversy rocks AFN, NOC over omission of Favour Ofili’s name
The Athletics Federation of Nigeria (AFN) is at a loss to explain how reigning Nigerian 100m champion, Favour Ofili, was omitted from the 100m event at the Paris 2024 Olympics.
Ofili, who secured her spot at the Olympics after clocking 11.06 seconds at the Nigerian trials, took to social media to express her shock and disappointment at being excluded from the blue-riband event.
She accused the AFN and the Nigeria Olympic Committee (NOC) of negligence.
The AFN has vehemently denied any deliberate attempt to exclude Ofili, claiming that her name was included in the list of entries submitted for the 100m, 200m, and 4x100m relay.
The federation’s technical director, Samuel Onikeku, expressed surprise at the omission.
Sports minister John Enoh has waded into the controversy, confirming that he spoke with the AFN technical director about the matter.
However, the NOC has yet to explain the glaring error.
Ofili’s exclusion is a major blow to Nigeria’s hopes in the sprint events and has raised serious questions about the competence of the AFN and the NOC in handling athletes’ affairs.
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