AFN Vice President, Hon. Abubakar Ladan Gurmi, has been appointed to lead the Athletics Federation of Nigeria’s (AFN) Special Investigative Committee (SIC) set up to probe allegations of age manipulation involving 17 Nigerian athletes, following a damning query issued by the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU).
The committee, inaugurated to unravel the circumstances behind the discrepancies flagged by the AIU, also includes Barrister Musa Amadu, Olympian Olumide Oyedeji, Barrister Edokoayi, and Mbora Ikana.
The AIU had reportedly written to AFN President, Tonobok Okowa, and General Secretary, Israel Inwang, highlighting multiple inconsistencies in the recorded ages of several athletes who have represented Nigeria at continental and global events.
Some of the identified athletes reportedly appear with three to four different dates of birth across competition entries, databases, and public records.
One of the prominent cases is that of Comfort Anietie James, a serving customs officer whose documented birth years—1998 and 2000—contradict her participation in youth competitions for which she should have been ineligible.
Also listed is Chioma Cynthia Nweke, the 2025 MTN CHAMPS Athletics Classics 100m champion, whose AFN and World Athletics profiles reportedly show conflicting dates of birth, raising questions about her eligibility for U20 events.
Another major case involves Jennifer Chioma Nwachukwu (also known as Chioma Elochukwu), who clocked an impressive 51.26 seconds in the NCAA this year but is said to have three different years of birth—2006, 2008, and 2010—associated with her records.
Others, including Islamiat Akinsanya and Esther Afigbo, were also flagged, exposing what the AIU describes as a pattern of “systemic fraud”.
“These discrepancies are not mere clerical errors; they point to deliberate manipulation of records to gain unfair advantage in age-category competitions,” the AIU stressed.
The development has drawn the attention of the National Sports Commission, which has directed the AFN to conduct a thorough investigation to protect Nigeria’s credibility on the global stage.
The AIU has given the AFN until January 16, 2026, to submit credible documents verifying the ages of the athletes. Failure to comply could attract severe sanctions.
Gurmi’s committee is expected to begin work immediately.
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