Somali Athletics Official Suspended After Runner’s Viral 100M Disaster
A sprinter who represented Somalia was found to be neither a “sports person” or even a “runner.”
Elham Garaad Twitter/CCTV
A Somali sports official was suspended on Wednesday over alleged “abuse of power” and “nepotism” following an investigation into how an apparently untrained runner was chosen to represent her country at an international athletics competition. Questions were immediately raised when footage of Nasro Abukar Ali’s pitiful performance in the 100-meter race at the World University Games in China went viral. Ali clocked in at 21.81 seconds—a full eight seconds slower than the second-last runner. On Wednesday, Somalia’s Ministry of Youth and Sports said it had suspended Khadijo Aden Dahir, the chairwoman of the Somali Athletics Federation, alleging nepotism. It’s not clear what the link is between Aden and Ali. “What happened today was not representative of the Somali people,” Somali Youth and Sports Minister Mohamed Barre Mohamud said in a Facebook video apologizing for the incident, according to Forbes.
The Ministry of Youth and Sports should step down. It's disheartening to witness such an incompetent government. How could they select an untrained girl to represent Somalia in running? It's truly shocking and reflects poorly on our country internationally. pic.twitter.com/vMkBUA5JSL
— Elham Garaad ✍︎ (@EGaraad_) August 1, 2023
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