Nigerian sprinter Divine Oduduru has revealed that he attempted suicide four times after being handed a six-year doping ban by the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) in October 2023.
Oduduru, 28, was sanctioned for possessing and attempting to use prohibited substances, resulting in a four-year ban. An additional two years were added for “aggravating circumstances” during the investigation, bringing the total ban period to six years.
In a heartfelt Instagram post on Friday, the sprinter broke his silence, citing mental health struggles as the reason for his long period of quiet.
He wrote, “Thanks to everyone, to my lovely fans who have been supporting me right from the beginning of my career.
“I know a lot of you have been waiting to hear from me about the issue that happened. I have been quiet all this time due to my mental health.
“I attempted suicide 4 times, just wanted to end everything, because all this things that happened is still a shock to me. After all the years of sacrifice. I will be granting interviews, and I am working on coming to life on my Instagram to tell my side of what happened.”
Oduduru was implicated as a client of Eric Lira, a self-acclaimed kinesiologist and naturopathic doctor who pleaded guilty in what has been described as the US’s first Olympic anti-doping case.
The AIU investigation identified Oduduru and fellow Nigerian athlete Blessing Okagbare as collaborators with Lira, who was accused of supplying performance-enhancing drugs to athletes for the Tokyo Olympics.
In its investigation, the AIU cited WhatsApp messages between Okagbare and Lira that implicated Oduduru, as well as photographic evidence of prohibited substances discovered in Oduduru’s Florida apartment. The substances matched those requested by Okagbare from Lira for both herself and Oduduru.
Despite maintaining his innocence, Oduduru’s ban was backdated to February 9, 2023, and will last until February 8, 2029.
