The absence of Godson Brume and Favour Ofili at the National Trials in Benin, Edo State will deprive Team Nigeria of two key athletes in the upcoming 2023 World Athletics Championship to be held in Budapest, Hungary.
The Athletics Federation of Nigeria (AFN) has confirmed that Brume and Ofili will not be participating in the championship due to their failure to attend the National Trials in Benin. In a recent announcement, the federation stated that athletes who did not take part in the trials would not be considered for selection.
While foreign-based athletes attended the event at the Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium in Benin City, Brume was nowhere to be seen. The federation dismissed Brume’s claim of missing his flight four times, considering it an invalid excuse.
Ese Brume, the older sister and World Championships silver medalist explained her brother’s absence from Benin. She stated that Godson faced issues while trying to fly from Washington to Nigeria, but she has made arrangements for him to travel to Nigeria for the World Championships after resolving the visa formalities.
Brume’s recent victory at the LSU Alumni Gold showcased his remarkable talent, as he clocked an impressive 9.97s (2.3), becoming the first Nigerian sprinter this season to achieve a sub-10s time.
Having led Team Nigeria at the 2021 World Athletics Championship (U-20 level) in Nairobi, Kenya, where the nation’s athletes won several gold medals, Brume earned a student-athlete scholarship to pursue studies at Louisiana State University (LSU).
The 2023 World Athletics Championship, the nineteenth edition of the World Athletics Championships, is scheduled to be held from 19 to 27 August 2023 at the National Athletics Centre, in Budapest, Hungary. The centre was specially built for this event and has a provisional capacity of 36,000. The city of Budapest had previously stated an interest to host the 2007 World Championships but withdrew and it was eventually held in Osaka.
