The women’s 200m race, which took place at the Chengdu Universiade in China, suddenly became a joke to sports fans around the world. The Somali athlete, who came to the exit, looked into the distance as if all her life had moved exclusively on foot, and still no further than the kitchen. She began to lag behind the rest of her rivals from the very first steps, and her arrival caused bewilderment and pity: the other participants in the race had already managed to catch their breath after completing the distance, and she had just crossed the line.
It would seem, what just does not happen at major international competitions? Under the beautiful motto of the harmonious development of sports around the world, frank “tourists” sometimes come to the Olympic Games, and even more so – to the Universiade. Many people remember how the legendary Bjorn Daly waited 20 minutes at the finish line for a Kenyan skier at the Nagano Games to thank him for his efforts. In the same row there are several participants in the figure skating tournament at the Universiade in Krasnoyarsk, who bravely performed single jumps, barely breaking the ice, and burst into thunderous applause. But in the case of the Somali runner, not everything was so simple.
“Such an aunt’s niece”
After Abukar’s return to his homeland, a scandal broke out in Somalia. The question arose: who sent a completely unsuitable participant to run to a great international start. It didn’t take long to find the culprit. Abukar was the niece of Khadija Adan Dahir, president of the Somali athletics federation. After a brief trial, the official had to leave her position. And we can say that Dahir came out of this situation with flying colors. The number of armed conflicts that her country has experienced in its history is dozens. And for such shame on a global scale, the official could well have paid with her life if any of the fellow citizens offended by this situation decided to settle accounts with her.
The end does not justify the means
In this regard, the question arises: what guided Dahir in sending a relative to the Universiade? He couldn’t ignore that his niece, with all due respect, can hardly be called a runner. It was very difficult for a girl who ran a hundred meters close to the results at a distance twice as long to achieve anything but ridiculous. In this case, talking about some prize money is completely strange and stupid. The only thing he has achieved is the dubious fame of “star of social networks” for his niece, who will probably remain forever in the history of world athletics, ever reaching international competitions of this level, and a scandalous dismissal for her, also with almost a “wolf ticket”. It seems that if Dahir had sent a relative to China as a tourist with the federation’s money, the resonance would have been much less. And now it is impossible to exclude the fact that for the former head of the Somali Athletics Federation, the case cannot end with a simple dismissal.
