FIFA’s New Bone Age Test Debutes In Nigeria
August 31, 2009 by Jyle Dupuis
Filed under FIFA World Cup
Doping and fair play in general has always been a top priority for FIFA officials. So when rumors surfaced that Nigeria was playing over aged teens in the U-17 World Cup games they had to do something.
Nigeria's players and team's head coach 'Yemi Tella' (C) celebrate their victory against Spain at the final match of the FIFA U-17 World Cup in Seoul, 09 September 2007.
FIFA has announced that they will randomly test players from the 24 competing U-17 nations with a new bone magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanner that will determine the age of the players. The test in non-invasive and causes no harm to the players. The integrity of the sport however is what is at stake. It’s not uncommon for teams to recruit players who are over aged but who look under-17 years old to give themselves the competitive edge. Players may also lie about their age to make the cut.
The U-17 FIFA World Cup Games are scheduled from October 24th through to November 15th and are being held in Nigeria, the current and defending U-17 title winners.
Image: Newscom
