Federal Committee Identifies Officials Responsible for Favour Ofili’s Exclusion from Olympics, Recommends Sanctions and Compensation

 

An investigative committee appointed by the federal government has pinpointed officials within the Athletics Federation of Nigeria (AFN) whose actions led to sprinter Favour Ofili’s exclusion from the women’s 100-meter race at the 2024 Paris Olympics. The committee, established by former Sports Development Minister John Enoh in September, was tasked with investigating Nigeria’s Olympic and Paralympic performance, where Team Nigeria failed to secure any medals and faced a string of controversies.

Despite meeting the qualifying standards, Ofili was unexpectedly left out of the event. Nigerian cyclist Ese Ukpeseraye also revealed she was forced to borrow a track bike from the German team to participate in the Keirin event, adding to the criticism surrounding Nigeria’s Olympic campaign.

On Monday, November 4, committee chairman Mumini Alao released the report. The findings revealed “conflicting evidence,” suggesting Ofili’s exclusion stemmed from multiple organizational failures, involving the AFN, Nigeria Olympic Committee (NOC), World Athletics (WA), and the International Olympic Committee (IOC). The report specifically cited AFN Secretary General Rita Mosindi for neglecting to promptly communicate crucial information about Ofili’s status to the Ministry of Sports Development and the NOC, leading to her omission from the race.

AFN Technical Director Samuel Onikeku was also reprimanded for “poor judgment” in failing to address early rumors about Ofili’s registration status, which could have prevented her exclusion. The report recommended that Ofili be compensated with N8 million from the AFN for the distress caused by the oversight. It also advised that both Mosindi and Onikeku face penalties.

Additionally, the report addressed Ukpeseraye’s social media post about her equipment, recommending she apologize formally to the Nigeria Cycling Federation, as her actions were deemed damaging to the federation’s image.

The report was officially submitted to the Ministry of Sports on October 22, shortly before President Bola Tinubu dissolved the ministry and re-established the National Sports Commission (NSC). The report was then handed over by Enoh to the new NSC head, Shehu Dikko, on October 30.