Favour Ofili’s coach, Dennis Shaver, has insisted that the sprinter will not compete at the Athletics Federation of Nigeria’s Commonwealth Games Trials, which begin on Sunday (today) in Lagos, after she was allegedly entered in one of the sprint events, Sunday PUNCH reports.

Ofili has been at the centre of controversy in Nigerian athletics following a failed nationality switch to Qatar earlier this year.

The 23-year-old filed for a change of allegiance from Nigeria to the Gulf nation last year, citing the circumstances that caused her to miss the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games and the failure of the Athletics Federation of Nigeria and the Nigeria Olympic Committee to register her for the women’s 100m event at the Paris 2024 Olympics.

However, her application was blocked by World Athletics over concerns about the implications for the integrity of international competition.

The decision has fuelled speculation that she could make a U-turn and represent Nigeria again, with some media outlets — though not The PUNCH — reporting that she had been 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 wrote in a post on X while reacting to reports linking her to the competition.

The AFN did not publish its official entry list, while an official contacted by our correspondent to confirm the athlete’s status simply said, “Just be patient.”

A check by our correspondent on Roster Athletics, a real-time athletics event management platform, showed that Ofili was listed in the women’s 200m preliminary event.

Since her application to switch allegiance became public last year, she has not competed for Nigeria. Her last appearance for the country came at the Paris 2024 Olympics, where she finished sixth in the women’s 200m final.

Meanwhile, the AFN Commonwealth Games Trials will begin today after being shifted by a day to allow athletes delayed in the United States to arrive on time.

The trials, originally scheduled to run from June 20 to 22 at the Yaba College of Technology Sports Complex in Lagos, will now hold from June 21 to 23 at the same venue.

According to the revised schedule, the opening day will begin with the women’s 5,000m final and men’s discus final before the first-round heats of the men’s and women’s 100m.

The day will also feature the men’s high jump final and the opening heats of the men’s and women’s 400m.

In the afternoon session, attention will shift to the women’s long jump, women’s shot put and the 800m finals for both men and women.

The women’s 100m heats, men’s triple jump final and men’s 5,000m final are also on the programme.

Day two, on Monday, June 22, will see race walkers compete for honours in the men’s and women’s 10,000m events, while field-event specialists contest the women’s javelin, women’s triple jump and men’s and women’s hammer throw finals.

Track events on the second day include the heats of the men’s and women’s 400m hurdles, followed by the highly anticipated 100m and 400m semi-finals for both men and women in the afternoon.

The day will conclude with the men’s and women’s 100m finals, expected to be among the highlights of the trials.

The final day, Tuesday, June 23, opens with heats in the men’s 110m hurdles, women’s 100m hurdles and the men’s and women’s 200m.

The concluding afternoon session promises a thrilling finish, featuring finals in the men’s and women’s 400m hurdles, men’s javelin, women’s high jump, men’s and women’s 1,500m, women’s discus, and the men’s and women’s 400m.

The competition will culminate with the finals of the men’s and women’s sprint hurdles and 200m events, where athletes will make their final push for Commonwealth Games qualification.

The national trials are expected to attract many of the country’s leading track and field athletes as they battle for places on Team Nigeria for the Commonwealth Games.