Some dreams are built on years of work, only to be undone by forces beyond an athlete’s control. Just a day before the 2026 World Indoor Championships in Torun, Poland, the Olympic 800m silver medallist was forced to withdraw. But not for the reason you might expect!

Tsige Duguma, the 2024 World Indoor 800m champion, was supposed to be Ethiopia’s shining hope in Torun. After all, she made history by becoming the first Ethiopian woman to win the indoor 800m, and fans were ready to see her defend that crown.

However, at this point, it is bureaucracy that has marginalized her, leaving her dreams and chances of Ethiopia securing a medal in limbo. But she is not the only one entangled in this mess of red tape.

Saron Berhe, the African and U20 1500m champion, 16-year-old sensation Haregeweyni Kalayu, who ran 4:01.92 this year, and Mosisa Siyoum, who clocked 3:34.28 in February, are all caught up in the same situation.

Just a month ago, all of them, except Mosisa, raced in Toruń at the Copernicus Cup. And now, a simple piece of paperwork is keeping them from competing on the world stage. So, what exactly is the problem?

As of now, the full details have not been officially released, but reports point to tightened visa rules for Ethiopian citizens. On the other hand, it is known that the European Union officially tightened visa requirements for Ethiopian citizens in April 2024.

Under the new policy, European countries can no longer waive documentation requirements, multiple-entry visas are no longer allowed, standard processing times have increased from 15 to 45 days, and waivers for diplomatic and service passports have been removed.

These measures were introduced after the EU concluded that Ethiopia was not cooperating sufficiently on the return of nationals who stay illegally in EU countries.

Even reports on X by @Nedops also highlight that the visa complications are tied to the “migration crisis and a lack of cooperation from Ethiopian authorities on this front, visa regulations for citizens of that country have been radically tightened (no visas allowing multiple border crossings into the EU, high fees, long processing times for applications, etc).”

Additionally, when asked about the situation of Tsige Duguma and fellow athletes having visa issues getting to World Athletics Championship events, World Athletics President Seb Coe responded:

“We encourage member federations to make sure that they recognize that they need to be absolutely on top of the administrative, paperwork, and appointments that athletes are making with various postholders and consulates from around the world.”

“That has challenges because there are countries that don’t always have a postholder of the host nation, and they have to travel elsewhere. It’s a global challenge now.”

For Duguma, Berhe, Kalayu, and Siyoum, months or even years of preparation have been interrupted by bureaucracy. The 2026 World Indoor Championships will go on, but it will now be missing some of the brightest stars. But the drama isn’t over yet as World Athletics has been closely monitoring the situation.

World Athletics acknowledges Visa hurdles and steps in to help

Previously, Coe emphasized the importance of federations staying on top of paperwork and consulate appointments, noting that there are countries that don’t always have a postholder of a host nation, and they have to travel elsewhere. It’s a global challenge now, it’s not sort of limited as it used to be to one or two..more complicated landscapes politically and socially.

But at the same time, World Athletics has a history of stepping in when visa issues threaten athlete participation. At the 2026 World Cross Country Championships, 14 Ethiopian athletes were denied US visas and couldn’t compete. Coe confirmed that the federation was working with the US Olympic & Paralympic Committee to resolve the situation and ensure Ethiopian representation.

He said at the time, “Visa is always a challenge anywhere in the world, particularly complicated in the US at the moment. We know that we must navigate our way through this. USOPC is being very helpful, as they were in Eugene a couple of years ago when we had the World Champ Championships there.”

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“And all I can tell you is we are aware of the situation, and it’s obviously very important that, if you have a world cross country championship, you have Ethiopia there. Believe me, that has not gone unnoticed, but there is work already underway in that.”

These statements show that World Athletics takes visa issues seriously. The federation actively works with host nations and member federations to help athletes overcome administrative hurdles, even when the obstacles are beyond the athletes’ control.