The Athletics Federation of Nigeria (AFN) has expressed disappointment over reports that Olympic sprinter Favour Ofili may have switched her sporting allegiance to Turkey, describing the development as “sad, disheartening and painful.”
In a statement issued on Sunday and signed by AFN President Chief Tonobok Okowa, the federation clarified that it had not received any official communication from either Ofili or World Athletics (WA) regarding the alleged switch.
“Just like every other sports-loving person in Nigeria, on the continent and beyond that, he and his newly elected board read and heard her desire to change nationality from the media,” the AFN statement read.
“If this is true, it is sad, disheartening and painful, but we have yet to get any official statement from her or any correspondence from World Athletics (WA), on her request. She is a promising athlete with huge potential,” it added.
Reports of Ofili’s switch to Turkey surfaced online late Saturday, originating from a post by Jamaica-based journalist Kayon Raynor on X. The timing of the revelation, just under three months before the 2025 World Athletics Championships in Tokyo — has added urgency and concern within Nigeria’s athletics community.
Ofili had earlier taken to social media to vent her frustration after missing out on the 100m spot at the upcoming Paris Olympics, accusing the AFN of administrative shortcomings.
“I have worked for four years to earn this opportunity. For what? This is not the first time you guys are doing this, so don’t think this is over because it’s not,” she wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter.
Chief Okowa responded to her outburst by pointing out that Ofili had already received her training grant for the year and reiterated that the administrative lapses during the 2020 Tokyo Olympics were not under his current tenure.
“Favour Ofili had already been paid her training grant for this year,” he said.
“The preparations for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics had been planned and concluded by the former board and the sports ministry, in association with the Nigerian Olympic Committee (NOC). We had no hand in the whole affair and built up to the Games. Look at the number of tests the AFN conducted under my watch.
We funded 60 per cent of the tests carried out before the Paris Games, there were no doping violations or anything of the sort,” Okowa added.
The AFN further suggested that Ofili’s absence from key national events may have signaled her intentions long before the latest reports.
“It’s also clear that she has been preparing and working on her newfound Turkish love. She is old enough to decide what’s best for her, but it’s painful and hard to take for us; however, we will not stop her, she is still our child, sister, and daughter.
We want to apologise to Nigerians, the National Sports Commission and the millions of people around the world, who hold the sport and country in high esteem, for this sad development.
Despite our own inadequacies, on several occasions she shunned the national trials, and even when she came, she selected the events she preferred to compete in.
At the 2024 African Championships in Cameroon, she refused to compete in the 100m after running in the heats, claiming that the organisers did not provide the right atmosphere for competition. She also did not turn up for the last African Games in Accra, Ghana.
No doubt Ofili is one of the best of our athletes in recent times, but she is difficult to deal with.
The AFN has its issues, but we are getting along well with other top athletes and are still thriving within the system. We wish her well in whatever she is doing and wherever she is going.”
Ofili, 22, remains one of Nigeria’s most talented sprinters. She holds the national record in the women’s 200m with a time of 21.96 seconds and boasts a personal best of 10.78 seconds in the 100m, both achieved in 2022.
