‘ Nobody has been punished yet’ – Dissapointed Team Nigeria athlete Favour Ofili wants justice for Paris Olympics 100m error
Favour Ofili, the sprint queen of Nigeria, is seeking answers after she was left off the entry list for the women’s 100m event at the Paris 2024 Olympics.
The 21-year-old athlete discovered that her name was missing from the list of competitors just days before the athletics events began.
Ofili’s social media outcry about the oversight by the Athletics Federation of Nigeria (AFN) and the Nigerian Olympic Committee (NOC) quickly went viral. Her plea for justice attracted support from prominent figures and athletes, who criticized the inefficiency of the AFN and NOC, which has dashed her Olympic dreams for the second consecutive time.
In response, Nigeria’s Minister of Sports, John Enoh, promised that action would be taken to address the issue and hold those responsible accountable. However, when the final entry list was released, Ofili’s name was still absent, ending her hopes of competing in the 100m in Paris.
Ofili took to her social media page to demand accountability, saying, “Sadly, nothing has been done…. I’m yet to see or hear anyone is being punished for what the NOC and AFN did to me. Athletes shouldn’t be getting punished for things out of their control.”
She questioned the responsibility of the World Athletics in ensuring federations and Olympic committees enter athletes correctly, adding, “Who assigned federations and/or Olympic committees to enter athletes into Olympic Games? Is it World Athletics? If so, should they not hold them accountable when they fail to do their job by not entering athletes in events they qualify and want to compete?”
Ofili continued to express her frustration, “NOC and AFN………. This is not the first time you guys are doing this so don’t think this is over because it’s not.”
Despite the setback, Ofili will shift her focus to the 200m and 4x100m relay events, where she still has the chance to make an impact.
