Favour Ofili Reportedly Switches Allegiance to Turkey Amid Fallout with Nigerian Athletics Officials
Nigerian sprint sensation Favour Ofili has reportedly changed her international allegiance to Turkey, effective May 31, following years of frustration with the Athletics Federation of Nigeria (AFN).
According to Jamaican outlet TVJ Newscentre, veteran reporter Kenny Raynor revealed that Ofili, 22, informed the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) of her decision, stating it wasn’t driven by money but by persistent administrative failures by Nigerian officials.
Ofili, who boasts personal bests of 10.93s (100m) and 21.96s (200m), missed the Tokyo 2020 Olympics after Nigeria failed anti-doping compliance for selected athletes — a scandal that disqualified nine others and drew global backlash.
She was also controversially left out of the 100m event for the Paris 2024 Olympics due to what she described as another AFN oversight. Though she competed in the 200m and finished sixth, the repeated blunders reportedly deepened her disillusionment.
An internal committee later recommended a $5,000 compensation and a formal apology, but neither has reportedly been issued. While former AFN secretary Rita Mordi was redeployed, the federation’s Technical Director at the time, Samuel Onikeku, returned to the board despite being indicted.
The AFN has not commented on Ofili’s reported switch, and as of June 22, she remains listed under Nigeria on the World Athletics website.
Under World Athletics Rule 4.4.2, athletes switching countries after competing in events like the Olympics must observe a three-year waiting period unless granted an exemption. Since Ofili ran for Nigeria in Paris, she would be ineligible to represent Turkey at the 2025 World Championships in Tokyo unless the Nationality Review Panel invokes Rule 4.6 to waive the wait due to “exceptional circumstances.”
