The Athletics Federation of Nigeria (AFN) has announced strict requirements for athletes hoping to earn places on Team Nigeria for the Glasgow 2026 Commonwealth Games, declaring that attendance at the forthcoming national trials is compulsory for selection consideration.
The federation also introduced tighter entry rules for major sprint events, stating that participation in the most high-profile races will be limited to runners who have met newly established performance benchmarks within the current qualification window.
AFN’s three-day trials are scheduled for June 20 to June 22 at the Yaba College of Technology (YABATECH) Sports Complex in Lagos.
What the AFN has set for the trials
- All athletes seeking selection to Team Nigeria must attend the national trials, with mandatory attendance described as non-negotiable.
- Entry to the men’s and women’s 100 metres, 200 metres, and 400 metres will be restricted to athletes who have achieved the pre-set qualifying standards during the current window.
- The remaining 26 events out of the 32 scheduled track and field disciplines will follow an open-participation format.
- A schedule requirement has been set for athletes to arrive in Lagos on Friday, June 19, ahead of competition, with departures set for Tuesday, June 23.
AFN President Chief Tonobok Okowa said the federation’s selective approach for sprint races is intended to ensure that only athletes at their best level will represent Nigeria in events that have long been considered national strongholds, while still allowing broad access for participation in technical field events and longer-distance competitions.
To help manage the costs of elite competitors, the AFN confirmed it will cover accommodation fully during the trials, but only for those who have officially met the selection benchmarks. The federation added that it will release a verified list of the athletes who are both qualified and funded in the days ahead.
Okowa also expressed appreciation to the National Sports Commission (NSC), crediting it with the financial support and administrative assistance needed to stage the trials and continue elite training camps leading up to the team’s journey to Scotland.
He described the trials as a key step in the final build-up, saying they will act as the federation’s sole merit-based checkpoint to assess the present form of Nigeria’s leading talents before final squad decisions for Glasgow are made.
The AFN media committee further confirmed that no exemptions or automatic berths will be provided to athletes based overseas or to other high-profile competitors who do not show up at the YABATECH Sports Complex.
