MOGADISHU (Halbeeg News) – Somalia’s Ministry of Sports and Youth suspended athletics boss after an untrained runner went viral for taking nearly 22 seconds to complete the 100-metre sprint at an international competition.
Nasra Abukar Ali, 20, came dead last at the World University Games in Chengdu, China on Tuesday, taking almost twice as long to finish as the winner, Brazil’s Gabriela Mourão.
In a video that went viral online, Nasra Abukar falls so far behind the pack that she is out frame for most of the race and finishes in a skip across the finish line.
Youth and Sports Minister Mohamed Barre Mohamud said Khadijo Aden Dahir had been suspended pending an investigation.
“It is clear to the ministry that Nasra (Abukar Ali) is not an athlete, and that Mrs. Khadija committed an act of abuse of power and defamation of the nation,” the sports ministry said.
Somalia’s sports minister apologized the public, describing Ali’s performance as an “embarrassment.”
“What happened today was not a representation of the Somali people,” he said.
The minister added that the investigation also revealed that there was no registered Somali University Sports Association.
Mohamud said that his ministry would be pursuing legal action against both the chairman of the Athletics Federation and “individuals responsible for the falsification of the Somali University Sports Association”.
In a statement shared on its Facebook page, the Union of Somali Universities said it had not sent a runner to compete in China.
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