Favour Ofili’s Coach Says She Won’t Compete at Trials

Favour Ofili’s coach, Dennis Shaver, has confirmed that the sprinter will not take part in the Athletics Federation of Nigeria’s Commonwealth Games Trials. These trials start today in Lagos. Reports suggest she was entered in one of the sprint events, according to Sunday PUNCH.

Ofili has been in the news for the wrong reasons in Nigerian athletics. Earlier this year, she tried to switch her nationality to Qatar but failed.

The 23-year-old applied to change her allegiance from Nigeria to Qatar last year. She did this because she missed the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games. She also felt let down by the Athletics Federation of Nigeria and the Nigeria Olympic Committee for not registering her for the women’s 100m event at the Paris 2024 Olympics.

World Athletics blocked her application due to worries about fairness in international competition. This decision has led to talks that she might return to represent Nigeria. Some media outlets, except The PUNCH, reported that she had registered for the Commonwealth Games Trials.

“Favour has not and will not be competing or entering the Nigerian Commonwealth Games Trials. If she is entered by someone, or AFN, we request the entry be removed.

“To make it clear, neither Favour nor any representative of Favour has entered her, and we request that her entry be removed today,” Shaver posted on X. He was responding to reports about her possible participation.

The AFN has not released its official entry list. An official who spoke with our correspondent about Ofili's status simply said, “Just be patient.”

Our correspondent checked Roster Athletics, a platform for managing athletics events. It showed that Ofili was listed in the women’s 200m preliminary event.

Since her attempt to switch allegiance became public last year, Ofili has not competed for Nigeria. Her last race for the country was at the Paris 2024 Olympics. She finished sixth in the women’s 200m final.

Meanwhile, the AFN Commonwealth Games Trials will kick off today. The start was pushed back by a day to allow athletes coming from the United States to arrive on time.

The trials were originally set for June 20 to 22 at Yaba College of Technology Sports Complex in Lagos. They will now take place from June 21 to 23 at the same venue.