One of Sierra Leone's best sprinters who went missing during the Commonwealth Games has lost his bid to stay in the UK.
Jimmy Thoronka went missing after competing in Glasgow last year when Ebola swept through his West African homeland.
The 21-year-old was found sleeping rough in London and was arrested in March by immigration officers for overstaying his visa.
He applied for leave to stay in the UK after being offered a sporting scholarship from a London university.
Despite widespread support, including a petition with more than 25,000 signatures, his appeal was rejected.
Thoronka was told he cannot appeal against the decision unless he leaves the UK, according to reports.
His case was allegedly turned down by the Home Office on the grounds it was "clearly unfounded".
"All applications for a visa or leave to remain are considered on their individual merits and in line with the immigration rules," a spokesman said.
"Mr Thoronka's claim did not meet the required thresholds within the immigration rules."
Thoronka, whose entire family died in the Ebola outbreak, said he was devastated by the decision.
He said: "What is going to happen to me if I am forced to return to Sierra Leone?
"There is no one to look after me and support me there and the training facilities are very bad.
"I don't think I will make it if I have to go back."
Despite Thoronka’s lawyers providing an expert medical report that said the sprinter was in a “chronic traumatised state” following the death of eight members of his family from Ebola, the Home Office rejected his claim on the grounds that he has no established family life here, having only been in the UK since summer 2014, and could seek counselling in Sierra Leone.
If Mr Thoronka does not return home voluntarily, the Home Office can forcibly remove him from the UK.
According to reports, officials have given him until Monday to declare he will leave the country voluntarily. If he does not comply by their deadline, he could be detained and deported at any point.
The University of East London (UEL) had offered him a place on a foundation degree course if he was granted a visa to stay in the UK.
The university said it was "very disappointed" that the sportsman would not be able to study in the UK and praised his fortitude in the face of "huge adversity".
Dusty Amroliwala, the university's deputy vice-chancellor and chief operating officer, said Thoronka was a "very special young man" and he was "deeply saddened" by the situation.
He added: "We are all obviously very disappointed that the opportunity for Jimmy to study in the UK and to continue to develop as a world-class athlete has, for now, been lost.
"At UEL, we set considerable store on the ability for people, of whatever backgrounds, to be granted the opportunity to achieve their full potential and to grasp the opportunity to succeed in their life ambitions through studying in higher education.
"Jimmy's story - his struggle against huge adversity, his determination to succeed, his fortitude, all in the face of losing his family for a tragic second time in his young life - these things all marked him out as being a very special young man.
"He was exactly the kind of individual to whom UEL would wish to extend the hand of support and we are deeply saddened that we are no longer allowed to do so.
"The outcome of the Home Office decision will doubtless be a severe test for him. But if he continues to show the strength, resilience and humanity that he has displayed over the past year or so, this is unlikely to be the final chapter in the Jimmy Thoronka story."
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