Nigerian sprinter Favour Onyah has threatened to stop representing Nigeria after she was left out of the country’s athletics squad for the 2026 Commonwealth Games despite qualifying at the National Athletics Trials, a development that has reignited concerns over transparency in athlete selection.
The 19-year-old quarter-miler expressed her frustration in a post on TikTok, suggesting that repeated disappointments had pushed her to the brink.
“Yes, I qualified for my first senior Commonwealth Games. And yes, I won’t be running for Nigeria. You can never guess the reason. I already forgave them three times; I don’t plan on making it four. You all are free to judge me for the next step I’ll be taking. I’ve had enough,” she wrote.
Onyah earned her place in contention after winning the women’s 400 metres at the National Athletics Trials in Lagos with a time of 52.68 seconds. She was also initially selected as part of Nigeria’s women’s 4x400m relay squad alongside Patience Okon-George, Ella Onojuvwevwo and Esther Joseph.
Following the trials, Onyah joined 14 other athletes in the first phase of the Commonwealth Games training camp in Abuja, which began on June 25. However, she did not progress to the final phase of preparations in Aberdeen, Scotland, where Team Nigeria assembled ahead of the Games. She has since returned to the United States, where she is based, to continue training.
The omission comes despite Onyah’s impressive rise in Nigerian athletics. Earlier this year, she represented Nigeria in the women’s 4x400m relay at the African Senior Athletics Championships in Ghana.
She also enjoyed a standout performance at the 2025 CAA Under-20 African Athletics Championships in Abeokuta, where she won three gold medals. Onyah claimed the women’s 400m title before anchoring Nigeria to victory in both the women’s and mixed 4x400m relay events, underlining her status as one of the country’s most promising young sprinters.
Her exclusion has added to growing criticism of the Athletics Federation of Nigeria’s selection process. Several athletes who excelled at the National Trials reportedly expressed dissatisfaction after the final Commonwealth Games squad was announced.
Former Nigerian sprinter and athletics coach Deji Aliu also criticised the federation, arguing that successful athletics nations operate with clear and transparent selection criteria based on qualifying standards, trial performances and rankings. According to him, inconsistent or opaque selection decisions risk eroding athletes’ trust and discouraging sponsors from investing in the sport.
As of Thursday, neither the Athletics Federation of Nigeria nor the National Sports Commission had publicly responded to Onyah’s remarks or explained the reasons behind her omission from the Commonwealth Games athletics team.
