The Athletics Federation of Nigeria has sent Favour Ofili a strong warning after rumours circulated that the 21-year-old athlete threatened to dump Nigeria.
Ofili, fell out with the AFN after her name was omitted from the women’s 100-meter race at the Paris Olympics.
While the federation tried to vindicate itself, the athlete believes they share a major part of the blame.
Due to the ongoing issue, Ofili, who impressed in the 200-metres category in Paris is reportedly considering leaving Team Nigeria for another country.
AFN’s response to Favour Ofili’s alleged threat
The Athletics Federation of Nigeria (AFN), however have responded to the alleged threats, claiming they have qualified athletes on hand to take Favour Ofili’s place should she decide to leave Nigeria and join another nation.
An AFN representative told The Guardian that the federation will not obstruct Ofili from pursuing her reported plans.
He said: “If truly Ofili is considering switching her allegiance from Nigeria to another country, it might be difficult for the AFN to prevent her.
“But Ofili must know some of the technicalities involved in such move because World Athletics’ rules state that for an athlete to be eligible to compete for another country, he/she must stay away from any athletics competition for a period of three years. It means Ofili will not compete in any athletics event between now and late 2027.“
Should Favour Ofili decide to leave Nigeria, she would join the ranks of athletes like Francis Obikwelu and many other Nigerian-born competitors who have switched nationalities to represent other countries.
