A Federal Government investigative committee has determined that failures by certain officials within the Athletics Federation of Nigeria (AFN) led to Favour Ofili’s exclusion from the women’s 100-meter event at the Paris Olympics.
Nigeria concluded the 2024 Paris Olympics, held from July 26th to August 11th, without any medals. This disappointing outcome was compounded by controversies, including Ofili’s exclusion and cyclist Ese Ukpeseraye’s revelation that she had to borrow a track bike from the German team to compete.
In a report released on Monday, Committee Chairman, Mumini Alao attributed Ofili’s non-registration for the event to multiple entities, including the AFN, the Nigeria Olympic Committee, World Athletics, and the International Olympic Committee.
The report criticized AFN Secretary General, Rita Mosindi, stating that her “negligence” in informing the Ministry of Sports Development and the Nigeria Olympic Committee of Ofili’s event status “reliably and promptly” contributed to the oversight. Additionally, AFN Technical Director Samuel Onikeku was cited for “poor judgment” in failing to act upon initial information regarding Ofili’s non-registration, a step that might have salvaged the situation had he reported it promptly.
The committee recommended disciplinary action for the officials involved and advised the AFN to compensate Ofili with N8 million for the “disappointment and distress caused by her omission.”
For the issue involving Ukpeseraye, the committee requested that she formally apologize to the Nigerian Cycling Federation and the Nigerian Olympic team for the embarrassment caused by her social media post on X (formerly Twitter) about borrowing a bicycle for her event.
The committee submitted its findings on October 22, a day before President Tinubu dissolved the Ministry of Sports Development, moving its functions under the newly established National Sports Commission, chaired by Shehu Dikko.
