Veronica Armanious
It has been reported that Ugandan Athlete Julius Ssekitoleko, a 20-year-old weightlifter left a note disclosing that his life in Uganda was too difficult and that he wished to work in Japan. He asked members of his delegation to send his personal belongings to his wife.
Julius Ssekitoleko, a 20-year-old weightlifter, failed to qualify for the Games after arriving in Japan and was due to fly back to Uganda on the 20th of July.
However, he was last seen at a station near his delegation’s hotel in Lzumisano at 6:30 AM on Friday.
It was found that no COVID-19 sample test had been submitted by Ssekitoleko. As a result, the local police have been searching for him, without much success.
Ssekitoleko competed in the Men’s 56kg weightlifting final at the 2018 Commonwealth Games, aged just 17. He finished 10th in that contest.
This is not the first time a Ugandan Athlete has been reported missing.
Two Ugandan athletes previously went missing in games held in Gold Coast, Australia.
And two rugby sevens players from Uganda, who went missing after the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, Scotland. Only later revealed to have claimed asylum and were playing for a rugby team in Cardiff.
The Ugandan delegation was among the first teams to arrive in Japan for the delayed Tokyo Olympics and started their training on July 7th.
The opening ceremony of the Games is set for Friday, but is said to have no audience, as Tokyo is in a state of emergency over Covid-19.
