Somalia Athletics apologizes for sending untrained athlete to World University Games

The Somalian athletics federation has apologized for the controversial selection of an athlete in the women’s 100m at the FISU World University Games in Chengdu, China. Nasra Abukar Ali, an untrained Somalian sprinter who lives in Montreal was selected to represent her country at the games, despite having no experience. Ali finished last in her 100m heat in 21.81 seconds, more than 10 seconds behind the winner, Gabriela Silva of Brazil.

The video made its way around social media on Monday evening, and the Somalian Ministry of Sport faced criticism as the public felt her time could be matched by most adults, and the athlete shouldn’t have been sent to the games without proper sprint training.

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

Ali’s sprinting background remains a mystery–she has no profile on the World Athletics database, nor on the World University Games site. According to the BBC, Ali is the niece of Khadija Aden Dahir, the senior vice president of Somalia’s athletics federation. The country’s sports minister released an apology and described the incident as “an embarrassment to the Somali people.”

One Somali commentator took to Twitter, questioning the selection process and asking, “How could they select an untrained girl to represent Somalia in the 100m? It’s truly shocking and reflects poorly on our country internationally.”

As it turns out, Ali did not need to meet any qualification times to compete at the FISU Games. According to World Athletics and FISU rules, countries with no male or female athletes meeting the entry standards can enter one unqualified male or female athlete in one event of the championships, except for certain events like the 10,000m, steeplechase, road races and field events.

The lack of strict qualification requirements for smaller nations allows athletics federations to enter athletes who have not hit entry standards in certain events. In previous competitions, other countries have entered athletes in the 100m under similar circumstances. At the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, Houlèye Ba represented Mauritania in the women’s 100m under the same “unqualified athletes” rule, and ran a personal best time of 15.26 seconds, finishing last.

This rule is often used by nations with limited representation at international competitions, despite the athletes’ performances being significantly behind the top contenders.

The controversy surrounding Ali’s participation in the FISU World University Games raises important questions about the integrity and transparency of the selection process.