Nigeria’s Favour Ofili has reacted after finishing sixth in the 200-metre final at the Paris 2024 Olympics on Tuesday night.
News About Nigeria reported that Ofili clocked 22.24 seconds in a race won by USA’s Gabby Thomas, who finished with a time of 21.83 seconds.
New women’s 100m champion Julie Alfred secured second place in 22.08 seconds, with another American, Brittany Brown, completing the podium at 22.20 seconds.
Shortly after the race, Ofili was captured crying as she walked through the mixed zone.
Taking to Twitter, Ofili wrote, “God’s will, not mine. It’s been a hard one coming. Tried to be mentally ready regardless of the shocking news I took a few days back. I gave it my all from lane 9. If it was easy, everyone would be doing it. Thank you, Coach Shaver. Having you around made everything a lot easier for me. * 200m finalist * Finished 6th overall **Next 4×100 (On God).”
The 21-year-old Nigerian sprinter was previously denied participation in the 100-metre race at the ongoing Olympics due to administrative failures by the Athletics Federation of Nigeria (AFN) and the Nigerian Olympic Committee (NOC).
Ofili expressed her frustration in a series of tweets last Tuesday, questioning the trustworthiness of both organisations and calling for accountability from those responsible for her lost opportunity.
In response, Sports Minister John Owan Enoh stated that he would investigate the exclusion of Favour Ofili from the 100-metre women’s event. Enoh later revealed that other countries are experiencing similar circumstances to Ofili’s.
Ofili’s achievement is still significant, as she is the first Nigerian woman to qualify for the final of the 200m at the Olympics in 28 years, following Mary Onyali’s bronze medal performance at the Atlanta 1996 Games.
