Oluwamayomikun Orekoya
NIGERIA’S Oyesade Olatoye has been stripped of her gold and bronze medals won at the recent African Games held in Morocco by International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF).
The 22-year-old was not cleared by IAAF’s Nationality Review Panel to represent Nigeria at the continental showpiece thereby annulling her results.
Olatoye, who is the 2019 Ohio State Female Athlete of the Year, was born in USA in 1997, but opted to represent Nigeria in 2019.
According to Rule 5.2(a)(ii) of the IAAF Competition Rules, Olatoye was eligible to represent Nigeria in National Representative Competitions from 17 September 2019 but was at the African Games which was held from 26 to 30 August 2019.
At the African Games, her first-round attempt of 16.61m was good enough for the gold medal while she got bronze in the hammer throw, throwing a distance of 16.61m to secure her medal.
Olatoye later represented Nigeria at the recent IAAF World Championship in Doha last month where she crashed out at the semi-final stage of the women’s shot-put event.
If her appeal is not successful, Olatoye would have to cede her gold medal to Ischke Senekal of South Africa while another South African, Mieke Strydom will move up to the silver medal; Benin Republic’s Odile Ahouanwanou will take the bronze.
Zouina Bouzebra from Algeria will get Olatoye’s bronze medal at the Women’s hammer throw event.
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