United States-based sprinter Favour Ofili went through the junior ranks, ruling the Nigeria Youth Games before leaving for the U.S. on a scholarship at Louisiana State University. Since then, her athletics career has been on the rise winning medals for both the school athletics team and Nigeria. In this report, GOWON AKPODONOR looks at Ofili’s career.
28 years after Mary Onyali’s historic moment at Atlanta ’96 Olympics, Favour Ofili returned Nigeria to the Games 200m final in Paris. Though, her effort to increase the record as the second Nigerian after Onyali to win an Olympics medal in the 200m event could not materialise on Tuesday evening, many Nigerians praised Ofili for her resilient in taking her event to the finals. 
“Despite the situation, the whole nation is proud of you,” President of the Athletics Federation of Nigeria (AFN), Tonobok Okowa told The Guardian shortly after the 200m final. In Tuesday’s final, Ofili competed in lane nine, which many consider a difficult lane in track and field. She finished in sixth position in 22.24secs. Although Ofili was off the block sharply after the gun, she could not maintain the stride as the race proceeded into the final 100m.
“It’s been a hard one coming. Tried to be mentally ready regardless of the shocking news I took few days back. I gave it my all from lane 9,” Ofili shared on her instagram handle.
While United States’ Gabrielle Thomas won the 200m title in 21.83ecs, newly crowned Olympics 100m champion, Julien Alfred of Saint Lucian took the silver in 22.08secs and America’s Brittany Brown settled for the bronze in 22.20secs
Before then, Ofili, who encountered a difficult moment at the Paris Olympics following her exclusion from the 100m event by an ‘unknown’ Nigerian official, had made history as the second woman after Onyali to qualify for the final of the 200m at the Olympics.
The Delta State-born Ofili ran a new 22.05secs personal season’s best to come second in her 200m semi-final heat behind the reigning Olympics 100m champion, Julien Alfred to secure one of the two automatic tickets on offer in the heat on Monday evening. The time is the fastest ever run by a Nigerian at the Olympics, supplanting the 22.16secs Onyali ran at Atlanta ’96 Olympics on her way to winning a bronze medal in the event.
The 21-year-old Ofili competed in the 200m final on Tuesday night alongside Julien Alfred, who the Nigerian has never beaten in all races, losing 5-0 in the 60m, 1-0 in the 100m and 3-0 over the 200m. The American champion, Gaby Thomas, had sent the signal of her preparedness for the title when she won her heat in an incredible 21.86secs.
Other top athletes, who lined up in the 200m final on Tuesday evening with Ofili include Mckenzie Long, the NCAA double sprint champion who the Nigerian defeated in the semifinals, Brittany Brown of the USA, Daryll Neita of Great Britain, Dina Asher-Smith also of Great Britain and another African, Cote d’Ivoire’s Jessika Gbai who ran a new 22.36secs lifetime best in qualifying for the final.
Before she filed out for the 200m event in Paris, Ofili’s dream was to compete in the 100m event. It was not to be, as her name disappeared from the list of women 100m competitors, a messy administrative meltdown that stained Team Nigeria’s participation at the Games.
Ofili, 21, broke the unpleasant news on her social media page, accusing the Athletics Federation of Nigeria (AFN) and the Nigeria Olympics Committee (NOC) for the omission. The U.S.-based Ofili qualified for the 100m event after winning the national title for the first time during the National Trials in Benin, Edo State, in June with 11.06secs, her personal best.
“It is with great regret that I have just been told I will not be competing in the 100 meters at this Olympic Games. I qualified, but those with the AFN and NOC failed to enter my name. I have worked for four years to earn this opportunity. For what…. not be entered and compete at the Olympic Games because the organisation responsible failed to enter me?
“Please remember, in the last Olympic Games I was not able to compete because AFN, NADC and NOC failed to release funds for athletes in the USA to be tested, which made 14 Nigerian athletes that qualified not compete. Now this, if those responsible are not held accountable for taking this opportunity from me, neither organisation can ever be trusted in the future!”
On its part, the AFN lamented that it did not know how the omission occurred, insisting that it registered Ofili for the 100m, 200m and the 4x100m relay. Troubled by the sad development, Sports Minister, John Owen Enoh, waded in, and called for a probe.
The probe, according to the minister, would unravel the culprits surrounding the omission of Ofili’s name in the 100m event. It was not the first time Ofili encountered such heartbreaking moment at the Olympics. At the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, Ofili and 13 other Nigerian athletes were denied participation because Nigeria failed to pay for their Out of Competition tests. Nigeria became an object of scorn at the Tokyo Olympics.
