Nasra Abubakar Ali, the Somali athlete who clocked the slowest ever 100 meters time at the World University Games in Chengdu China, said she had an injury while participating the event.
In a statement, Abubakar explained she was shocked that people mocked her poor performance without considering that she was not fully fit for the race.
“Somalis do not deserve to be represented in a running competition, I ran with a sprained leg, but I am criticized,” she said.
Abubakar crossed the finish line alone having clocked 21.81 seconds, a time which was over 10 seconds slower than her fellow competitors on the Monday track event.
Footage of her performance which showed how Nasra Abubakar skipped over the line sparked widespread criticism on social media.
Authorities launch probe
Somali Sports Minister Mohamed Barre Mohamud declared an investigation into Ali’s selection to take part in the competition.
“What happened today was not representation of the Somali people, we apologize to the Somali people.
The fact that she reportedly had no previous experience of competing has prompted some Somalis to wonder why she was ever selected. We are trying to find out, “he said.
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The minister subsequently ordered Somali’s Olympic Committee to suspend Khadijo Aden Dahir, the chairwoman of the Somali Athletics Federation.
This is due to claims that Ali is Dahir’s niece, a Facebook post in which the athletics federation official congratulated Nasra Abubakar on her graduation resurfaced.
Further, Dahir is accused of “abuse of power, nepotism, and defaming the name of the nation” in the international arena.
“There have been allegations that the woman was a relative of Dahir’s and was given a chance to compete because of it, “said the Ministry.
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How did Nasra Abubakar qualify?
Additionally, Mohamud said his ministry did not know how the 20-year-old qualified to compete in the 100-meter race and Dahir will also be subject to legal proceedings.
“The Ministry firmly declares its intention to pursue legal action against both the Chairman of the Athletics Federation of Somalia and individuals responsible for the falsification of the Somali University Sports Association,” read the statement.
He also revealed that investigators had discovered that there was no registered Somali University Sports Association, suggesting documents had been falsified to allow Ali to compete at the Games in Chengdu.
This was confirmed by the Association of Somali Universities which said in a statement that it did not send any athlete to compete in the event.
The FISU World University Games is for student-athletes and is held every two years.
