By Seun Oyediji 

After two inconclusive elections and days of uncertainty, Professor Lucas Ogunjimi has formally withdrawn from the race to represent coaches and technical officials on the board of the Athletics Federation of Nigeria (AFN), endorsing his rival, Solomon Aliyu.

The elections, initially scheduled to hold on Wednesday in Abuja, failed to take place due to the absence of technical officials. A rescheduled poll on Thursday morning also did not hold, as Ogunjimi and his supporters were absent. The process was eventually moved to Saturday to give room for all parties to prepare adequately.

However, in a statement released Thursday evening, Prof. Ogunjimi, after consultations with members of the Nigeria Association of Athletics Technical Officials (NAATO), announced his decision to step aside in the interest of unity.

“The election for the ACAN/NAATO representative on the board of the Athletics Federation of Nigeria is not a do-or-die affair,” the statement read. “We have therefore, with all sincerity, resolved to allow ACAN to take and occupy the AFN technical rep at this point in time in the incoming board. We believe this will go a long way in facilitating unity of purpose and the smooth running of the federation.”

Reacting to the development, Aliyu, who is the President of the Athletics Coaches Association of Nigeria (ACAN), welcomed the gesture and commended Prof. Ogunjimi for his statesmanship.

“I’m quite relieved that this seemingly tortuous journey has come to an end,” Aliyu said. “I’m glad about the decision of Prof. Ogunjimi to step down. NAATO is a sister body to ACAN — we are all working towards achieving the same goals for Nigerian athletics.”

NAATO had occupied the technical representative slot on the AFN board for the past three consecutive tenures.