Favour Ofili may have dumped Nigeria for nationality switch to Turkey, but did she make the right decision? These reasons 3 reasons explains why she was wrong.
Following reports on record-breaking sprinter Favour Ofili dumping Nigeria for Turkey, several opinions have surfaced online on whether she made the right decision or not.
For context, the 22-year-old has been Nigeria’s best sprinter in the past few years and seen as the heir to the legendary Blessing Okagbare‘s throne as a future Olympic and world medallist.
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Favour Ofili at the Grand Slam Track in Miami last month
With the recent developments of her switch of allegiance to Turkey, Pulse Sports has deciphered why she may have made the wrong decision not choosing to stay in Nigeria.
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Tobi Amusan ran her second fastest time in history, third fastest time in all conditions to finish second in the women’s 100m Hurdles at the Paris Diamond League.
1 – Forfeit of the World Championships in Tokyo
Ofili allegedly applied for her nationality switch on May 31, 2025, meaning she will acquire Turkish citizenship and residency before the end of June.
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World and Nigerian record Favour Ofili has reportedly switched allegiance to Turkey as of May 31, 2025. She made the decision citing the incompetency of the AFN.
Once her citizenship is approved by World Athletics, she cannot represent Turkey at any major championship for three years. This is due to the three-year eligibility rule enforced by World Athletics. As a result, Ofili will not compete at the World Championships in Tokyo this summer, and her first international competition representing Turkey will be at the LA 2028 Olympic Games.
The sprint sensation is currently one of the world’s best sprinters and after her 150m World Record (WR) earlier this season and 200m sixth place finish at the Paris Olympic Games last summer, she was on pace to challenge for a 200m medal at the World Championships in Tokyo in September.
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Favour Ofili (right) had a great chance of medalling at the World Championships in Tokyo this summer. Photo: Imago
With her participation in Tokyo now out, the question is if she’ll keep her form or stay relevant in the track world for three years. Without disputing the fact that she’s super talented and just getting to her peak years, so she still has a whole lot to give in her career. However, adding three years without a major international championship is surely a decision that could have an effect positively or negatively. Hopefully, it isn’t the latter.
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2 – Heartbreak for Nigerian fans
Majority of Nigerian athletics fans have supported her right from her youth level to date.
Ofili started donning the country’s colours as a 15-year-old, competing at every age group continental and international championships, winning medals at each of them.
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Favour Ofili during her youth years representing Nigeria
They’ve grown to support, love, and defend her even when the Athletics Federation of Nigeria (AFN) caused her several pains, especially at the Tokyo and Paris Olympic Games.
She was even named ‘Star Girl’ as their shining talent in line to take over the sprinting legacy of the legendary Blessing Okagbare. With her switch, she has left several fans heartbroken, and the thought of having to support her from afar is a hard pill to swallow.
“Don’t think anyone is angry at her switching… they just sad they have to be a fan from afar now,” wrote a heartbroken X user on Ofili’s decision.
3 – Wasted investment as a homegrown talent
The Athletics Federation of Nigeria (AFN) has struggled to nurture homegrown talents to elite levels; however, they commendably succeeded with Favour Ofili.
At age 15, she was selected to represent the country at the African Youth Championships in Algiers, where she won 400m gold. To ensure her talent continued to develop, Ofili made her senior debut at the 2019 African Games in Rabat. There, she won a silver medal in the 400m and was also part of the gold medal-winning 4x400m relay team. This marked her first senior international medal for Nigeria.
Since then, she represented Nigeria at every continental and international championships to date, becoming a household name in the country.
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Young Favour Ofili at the 2019 World Championships in Doha
Her exceptional performances at these championships earned her world recognition and paved the way to secure a student-athlete scholarship at Louisiana State University, where her talent will be fine-tuned to world-class level.
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Favour Ofili graduated a standout student-athlete at Louisiana State University
The AFN may not be the best at administrative duties, but the exposure and support they’ve given her through the years was relevant in her progress and this should be the time for the country and faithful fans to have return on investment, being the face of Nigeria athletics alongside Tobi Amusan and Ese Brume.
These veterans were also nurtured like Ofili and having to rebuild again with another homegrown talent is definitely going to take a few years.
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The 2025 season has been loaded with lots of top performances by sprinters who have maintained an unbeaten streak in their major events and races.
Ofili had a huge chance at medalling at the World Championships in Tokyo this summer and could have been part of a talented pool of the women’s 4x100m squad, but that is now impossible.
And as always, Nigeria now has to depend on Amusan and Brume for any chances of medalling in any women’s track and field event for the next few years.
