President of the Athletics Federation of Nigeria, Chief Tonobok Okowa, has called on foreign missions in the country to ease the processing of entry visas for athletes qualified to participate in competitions abroad,The PUNCHreports.Okowa spoke against the backdrop of difficulties Nigerian athletes faced at Hungary’s embassy, with visa issues eventually causing the 100m mixed relay team to miss the competition at the recent World Athletics Ultimate Championship in Budapest.The AFN president, who is also a senior vice-president of the Confederation of African Athletics, said the problem started with a delay by the local organising committee in sending visa-support letters to the Hungarian Embassy in Nigeria, and that all efforts by officials failed to save the day.He acknowledged interventions from National Sports Commission chairman, Mallam Shehu Dikko, Nigeria Olympic Committee president, Engr Habu Gumel, and prominent Nigerian sports personalities, who tried to resolve the impasse, but to no avail.Related NewsNSC awaits FIFA’s decision on NFF reformWA Ultimate Champs: Nigerian athletes rake in $130,000Okowa targets 2027 World Championships gloryDespite the setback, Okowa said Nigeria’s outing at the championship in Budapest was satisfying, describing it as an encouraging performance by a contingent of young athletes alongside already established ones. He promised that lessons learnt from the visa processing hiccups and other logistical matters would help guard against any recurrence, especially heading into next year’s World Athletics Championship, which he declared to be the AFN’s priority.“This is a young team, and the fact that we made it to the final in four of the five events we competed in is very encouraging. The World Championship in China next year is the AFN’s big focus.“We must learn from what happened and ensure that everything concerning visas, documentation and logistics is handled much earlier. We will continue to work with these athletes and identify areas that need improvement,” he said.“The athletes should not have to go through this kind of pressure when they are preparing to compete for their country.” Okowa spoke against the backdrop of difficulties Nigerian athletes faced at Hungary’s embassy, with visa issues eventually causing the 100m mixed relay team to miss the competition at the recent World Athletics Ultimate Championship in Budapest.The AFN president, who is also a senior vice-president of the Confederation of African Athletics, said the problem started with a delay by the local organising committee in sending visa-support letters to the Hungarian Embassy in Nigeria, and that all efforts by officials failed to save the day.He acknowledged interventions from National Sports Commission chairman, Mallam Shehu Dikko, Nigeria Olympic Committee president, Engr Habu Gumel, and prominent Nigerian sports personalities, who tried to resolve the impasse, but to no avail.Related NewsNSC awaits FIFA’s decision on NFF reformWA Ultimate Champs: Nigerian athletes rake in $130,000Okowa targets 2027 World Championships gloryDespite the setback, Okowa said Nigeria’s outing at the championship in Budapest was satisfying, describing it as an encouraging performance by a contingent of young athletes alongside already established ones. He promised that lessons learnt from the visa processing hiccups and other logistical matters would help guard against any recurrence, especially heading into next year’s World Athletics Championship, which he declared to be the AFN’s priority.“This is a young team, and the fact that we made it to the final in four of the five events we competed in is very encouraging. The World Championship in China next year is the AFN’s big focus.“We must learn from what happened and ensure that everything concerning visas, documentation and logistics is handled much earlier. We will continue to work with these athletes and identify areas that need improvement,” he said.“The athletes should not have to go through this kind of pressure when they are preparing to compete for their country.” The AFN president, who is also a senior vice-president of the Confederation of African Athletics, said the problem started with a delay by the local organising committee in sending visa-support letters to the Hungarian Embassy in Nigeria, and that all efforts by officials failed to save the day.He acknowledged interventions from National Sports Commission chairman, Mallam Shehu Dikko, Nigeria Olympic Committee president, Engr Habu Gumel, and prominent Nigerian sports personalities, who tried to resolve the impasse, but to no avail.Related NewsNSC awaits FIFA’s decision on NFF reformWA Ultimate Champs: Nigerian athletes rake in $130,000Okowa targets 2027 World Championships gloryDespite the setback, Okowa said Nigeria’s outing at the championship in Budapest was satisfying, describing it as an encouraging performance by a contingent of young athletes alongside already established ones. He promised that lessons learnt from the visa processing hiccups and other logistical matters would help guard against any recurrence, especially heading into next year’s World Athletics Championship, which he declared to be the AFN’s priority.“This is a young team, and the fact that we made it to the final in four of the five events we competed in is very encouraging. The World Championship in China next year is the AFN’s big focus.“We must learn from what happened and ensure that everything concerning visas, documentation and logistics is handled much earlier. We will continue to work with these athletes and identify areas that need improvement,” he said.“The athletes should not have to go through this kind of pressure when they are preparing to compete for their country.” He acknowledged interventions from National Sports Commission chairman, Mallam Shehu Dikko, Nigeria Olympic Committee president, Engr Habu Gumel, and prominent Nigerian sports personalities, who tried to resolve the impasse, but to no avail.Related NewsNSC awaits FIFA’s decision on NFF reformWA Ultimate Champs: Nigerian athletes rake in $130,000Okowa targets 2027 World Championships gloryDespite the setback, Okowa said Nigeria’s outing at the championship in Budapest was satisfying, describing it as an encouraging performance by a contingent of young athletes alongside already established ones. He promised that lessons learnt from the visa processing hiccups and other logistical matters would help guard against any recurrence, especially heading into next year’s World Athletics Championship, which he declared to be the AFN’s priority.“This is a young team, and the fact that we made it to the final in four of the five events we competed in is very encouraging. The World Championship in China next year is the AFN’s big focus.“We must learn from what happened and ensure that everything concerning visas, documentation and logistics is handled much earlier. We will continue to work with these athletes and identify areas that need improvement,” he said.“The athletes should not have to go through this kind of pressure when they are preparing to compete for their country.” Despite the setback, Okowa said Nigeria’s outing at the championship in Budapest was satisfying, describing it as an encouraging performance by a contingent of young athletes alongside already established ones. He promised that lessons learnt from the visa processing hiccups and other logistical matters would help guard against any recurrence, especially heading into next year’s World Athletics Championship, which he declared to be the AFN’s priority.“This is a young team, and the fact that we made it to the final in four of the five events we competed in is very encouraging. The World Championship in China next year is the AFN’s big focus.“We must learn from what happened and ensure that everything concerning visas, documentation and logistics is handled much earlier. We will continue to work with these athletes and identify areas that need improvement,” he said.“The athletes should not have to go through this kind of pressure when they are preparing to compete for their country.” “This is a young team, and the fact that we made it to the final in four of the five events we competed in is very encouraging. The World Championship in China next year is the AFN’s big focus.“We must learn from what happened and ensure that everything concerning visas, documentation and logistics is handled much earlier. We will continue to work with these athletes and identify areas that need improvement,” he said.“The athletes should not have to go through this kind of pressure when they are preparing to compete for their country.” “We must learn from what happened and ensure that everything concerning visas, documentation and logistics is handled much earlier. We will continue to work with these athletes and identify areas that need improvement,” he said.“The athletes should not have to go through this kind of pressure when they are preparing to compete for their country.” “The athletes should not have to go through this kind of pressure when they are preparing to compete for their country.”