The Athletics Federation of Nigeria (AFN) has introduced a formal age-group development programme to identify young athletes, monitor their progress and tackle age falsification in track and field.
Sule Oluyemi, who chairs the AFN Youth Development Commission and coaches Team Nigeria, unveiled the plan at the Yaba College of Technology Sports Complex as the Dynamic Athletics Meet reached its conclusion.
The policy will see the federation register athletes from an early stage in four categories: under-13, under-15, under-17 and under-20. Their details will be stored in a central database, giving the AFN a long-term record of each competitor.
Oluyemi said the system would prevent athletes from repeatedly altering their ages because their information would remain on file throughout their careers. He added that the AFN would cooperate with individual coaches to follow promising talents emerging from grassroots competitions, including independent events such as the Dynamic Athletics Meet, while also creating opportunities for them to compete regularly.
