The Athletics Federation of Nigeria (AFN) has constituted a special investigative panel to probe widespread age discrepancies that have plunged the federation into another round of crisis.
The committee, chaired by AFN Vice President Abubakar Ladan Zurmi, has been given a tight deadline to determine how several Nigerian athletes ended up with multiple, conflicting birth dates—some as much as 4 years apart.
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The panel includes legal and sports governance figures such as Musa Amadu, former NBA star and NOC Vice President Olumide Oyedeji, AFN Legal Adviser Dele Edokoayi and Mbora Ikana of the National Sports Commission (NSC).
Their mandate is to uncover the origins of the contradictions and recommend sanctions before the week runs out.
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But even as the federation moves to show urgency, critics argue the AFN is attempting to extinguish a fire that started under its own roof.
The scandal erupted after the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) flagged at least 17 Nigerian athletes for having conflicting birth dates across databases, including AFN registration files and profiles in the global World Athletics system.
Some athletes reportedly appeared under three or four different birth records.
AFN President Tonobok Okowa, speaking in a radio interview with Talk Sports, pushed back against suggestions that the federation itself enabled the inconsistencies, instead placing responsibility on athletes and their coaches.
He argued that the discrepancies arose because athletes “went to different competitions and used different ages.” Still, critics say that the explanation exposes deeper failures in AFN’s internal verification and data management processes.
Governance experts note that the AFN’s national registration system, athlete documentation and entry submissions ought to be the first line of defence against fraud—yet in this instance, it was the AIU, not the federation, that detected the irregularities.
The scandal has triggered a sharp response from the National Sports Commission, which described the matter as unacceptable.
NSC Director General Bukola Olopade, after meeting with AFN Technical Director Gabriel Okon and national coaches, delivered the strongest reprimand yet.
“We are aware of the query from AIU of World Athletics, and for us at the National Sports Commission, this does not paint the AFN in a good light, and as a Commission, we will not hesitate to come out hard on any official and administrator who we find culpable for this embarrassment,” he said in a press statement on Tuesday.
He warned that recent resolutions on age manipulation would be enforced fully:
“We want to make it clear again to all our Sport Federations, coaches and administrators that our resolution at the last Council of Sports meeting in Calabar to clamp down on age issues will not be compromised regardless of who is involved.”
Mr Olopade added that win-at-all-cost tactics were hurting athlete development.
“Youth competitions are for developmental purposes; therefore, the win-at-all-costs syndrome must stop, and the NSC needs the collaboration of every stakeholder to put this to an end in our Sports.”
Two athletes preparing for the Africa Youth Games have already been dropped over suspicious records, and more exclusions are expected as the investigations deepen.
Analysts note that the saga reflects a recurring pattern in Nigerian sport rather than an isolated episode. From FIFA sanctions in 1989 to mass MRI failures before the 2009 U-17 World Cup, the country has long battled systemic age falsification.
The AIU has already signalled that Nigeria could face disciplinary action if the federation’s explanations prove unsatisfactory.
NSC introduces tough nationwide sanctions for age fraud
Before this latest controversy, the National Sports Commission, barely two weeks ago, had announced securing formal approval for a policy that criminalises age falsification across Nigerian sport.
Endorsed by the National Council on Sports in Calabar, the new framework imposes strict penalties on athletes, coaches, officials, state delegations, and administrators implicated in any form of age manipulation. Sanctions include immediate disqualification, loss of medals, annulment of records, and suspensions, which may extend to permanent bans for repeat offenders.
Coaches and officials risk multi-year licence withdrawals and removal from all duties, while teams or state delegations may face disqualification and financial penalties.
NSC Director General Bukola Olopade said the new measures are designed to end decades of impunity.
“The era of impunity is over. [Age falsification is] a national disgrace and a systematic sabotage of Nigeria’s sports future,” he said.
He added that stricter enforcement is essential to protect young athletes.
“Age cheating steals dreams, destroys careers and tarnishes our flag,” he said. “These new sanctions send a clear message: If you manipulate, falsify or misrepresent ages in Nigerian sport, you will face the full weight of the law. Genuine 17-year-olds should not be competing against falsified 20-year-olds. These reforms protect our children, our reputation and our future.”
With the AIU watching closely and the NSC breathing down their neck, the AFN must provide verifiable age confirming documents, including birth certificates, passports, school records, or medical files, to establish the flagged athletes’ true ages.
