Brume, Ofili out of 2023 World Athletics Championship

Team Nigeria will be without two of her key athletes at the 2023 World Athletics Championship in Budapest, Hungary as the duo of Godson Brume and Favour Ofili are absent at the National Trials in Benin, Edo-state.

According to the Athletics Federation of Nigeria (AFN), the duo have been ruled off the championship due to their withdrawal from the National Trials in Benin.

The federation a few days ago announced that any athletes that failed to participate in the trial will not be selected.

The event started inside the Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium in Benin City, yesterday, with other foreign-based athletes in attendance, but Brume was nowhere to be found.

Brume was said to have missed the flight four times an excuse the federation believed is not tenable.

Explaining her brother’s absence from Benin, the sprinter’s older sister, World Championships silver medalist, Ese Brume, said Godson should not be blamed entirely for his no-show.

“He got to Washington, but could not fly to Nigeria due to some issues. He didn’t miss his flight four times. He has been communicating with AFN and I just pray they will have reason to allow him.

“He had problems getting across to me, while I was on my way to Sweden for the Diamond League. I have booked another ticket for him and he is airborne to Nigeria to get his visa for World Championships,” Ese stated.

Brume defeated world silver medalist and multiple Olympians at the LSU Alumni Gold, clocking a brilliant 9.97s (2.3), making him the first Nigerian sprinter to run a sub-10s time this season.

Brume captained Team Nigeria to the 2021 World U-20 Athletics Championships in Nairobi, Kenya, where the nation’s athletes won some gold medals. He later gained a student-athlete scholarship to study at the Louisiana State University (LSU).