World Athletics rejects Favour Ofili’s switch to Turkey

World Athletics has ruled against Favour Ofili’s attempt to switch her national allegiance from Nigeria to Turkey, rejecting her application alongside those of 10 other foreign athletes

The decision was made by WA’s Nationality Review Panel, which found that the applications were part of a wider recruitment drive by the Turkish Athletics Federation aimed at attracting overseas athletes.

According to the governing body, the strategy risks undermining the integrity of international athletics by prioritising imported talent over the development of homegrown athletes.

Ofili, 23, initiated the process in 2025 after publicly accusing the Athletics Federation of Nigeria of neglect and administrative failures that affected her career.

She missed the Tokyo 2020 Olympics due to Nigeria’s failure to meet mandatory drug-testing requirements on her behalf. A similar administrative lapse also ruled her out of the 100m event at the Paris 2024 Olympics after her name was not submitted in time.

“In its decisions, the panel considered that approval of these applications would impinge upon and compromise the imperatives underlying the World Athletics eligibility rules and transfer of allegiance regulations,” World Athletics wrote in a statement.