Before the closing ceremony of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games commenced last Sunday at Stade de France, most of the members of Nigeria’s contingent to the World’s greatest sports show were already back to their basis or shopping in the City of Romance.
A total of 88 athletes featured across 12 sports for Nigeria at the Paris Olympic Games which held from July 26 to Aug. 11.
The events are: Badminton, Basketball, Boxing, Canoeing, Cycling, Football, Swimming, Table-tennis, Taekwondo, Weightlifting and Wrestling.
The Americans also won the most total medals with 126 to China’s 91, after winning 42 bronze medals as against China’s 24, both countries tied at 40 gold medals.
Team Nigeria had one of its worst performances since joining the Olympic movement as an independent country at 1964 Tokyo Olympic. Zero gold. Zero silver. Zero bronze.
The embarrassing outing matched that held in Mexico 1968, Moscow 1980, Seoul 1988 and London 2012. Even as a debutant in 1964 Nigeria won one bronze medal.
At Rio 2016 Nigeria managed one silver medal. Four year later in Tokyo, the country won one silver and one bronze. The glittering year was 1996 when Nigeria won two gold, one silver and one bronze medal.
At least nine African countries, including Kenya and South Africa won gold, but the “Giant of Africa” with over 200 million people returned empty handed.
This was in spite of over N12 billion released for this year’ s Olympics, which is almost twice the amount budgeted for the entire Ministry of Science and Technology for 2024.
The Sports Minister had confirmed before the start of the Games that the Federal Government approved and released over N12 billion for Team Nigeria with N9 billion budgeted for the Olympics.
The remaining N3 billion is expected to cater for the Paralympics team, which will hold in in same city from Aug. 28 to Sept. 8.
Sports analysts say many factors are responsible for Nigeria’s abysmal performance, including administrative shortcomings and poor talent management.
Nigeria had glimpses of success, but the hope was dashed as the athletes that carried the dreams of the sports loving country failed to shine.
Tobi Amusan did not make the final of the women’s 100 metres hurdles, in spite of the fact that she came into the Games as the world record holder.
Ese Brume finished fifth in the women’s long jump, while Blessing Oborududu suffered a painful defeat as she ended her contest in the women’s 68kg wrestling event without a podium finish.
Hannah Reuben lost her Women’s Freestyle 76kg fight early Saturday to effectively put the country’s slim hope of making the podium to rest.
Mongolia’s Enkh-Amaryn Davaanasan defeated her 5-2 in the round of 16 tie, capping off the country’s worst Olympic outing since London 2012.
The female basketball team, the Tigress showed glimmer of hope after beating top teams, Australia and Canada to make it to the quarter final. But they came short against their U.S counterparts.
In addition to the abysmal performance, the country also dealt with a handful of controversies at the Games.
The most prominent was the exclusion of Favour Ofili from the women’s 100 meters race in spite of holding one of the best qualifying times.
Another was the revelation by Ese Ukpeseraye that she had to borrow a track bike from the German team to perform in the Keirin cycling event.
The administrative issues continued with athletes’ agitation over the disparity between the amount paid to the foreign-based athletes and their home-based counterparts.
Nigeria-based athletes who represented the country at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games demanded same training grants as their foreign-based counterparts
It was learnt that the foreign-based athletes were paid 5,000 dollars as their training grant for the Games, while their local counterparts got 1,000 dollars.
However, it was not all doom for Nigeria as Ofili became the first Nigerian to make the women’s 200 metres final in 28 years, while Samuel Ogazi also broke a 38-year jinx by making the men’s 400m final.
Also, Nigeria had three athletes- Brume, Ruth Usoro and Prestina Ochonogor in the women’s long jump final event.
Japan finished third with 20 gold, 12 silver and 13 bronze for a total of 45, while Australia came in fourth place with 18 gold, 19 silver and 16 bronze for a total of 53.
But no factor arguably counted more against Nigeria more than talent migration as while Nigeria won no medal, several athletes of Nigerian descent who laurels of different hues for their adopted countries.
Some of such athletes include: Yemisi Ogunleye (gold, Shot put, Germany), Samuel Omorodion, (gold, football, Spain), Michael Olise (silver, football, France), Anette Echikunwoke, silver, hammer throw U.S) and Barthélémy Chinenyeze, (gold, volleyball, France).
Others are: Salwa Eid Nasara (silver, Bahrain, 400 meters). She was formerly known as Ebelechukwu Agbapuonwu and performed at the 2013 School Sports in Port Harcourt and the National Youth Games in Ilorin, Femi “Bam” Adebayo (gold, U.S. basketball, men).
There was also Rasheed Adeleke, Republic of Ireland. Though she did not have a podium finish at the Olympics she has been an Irish national record holder. Ayomide Folorunsho competed for Italy in the women 400m.
Similarly, Saheed Idowu competed in the Table Tennis event wearing the colours of the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Out of these seven athletes who won medals, the story of Echikunwoke was the most touching as it was reported that she was set to compete for Nigeria way back at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics before switching her allegiance to the U.S.
Echikunwoke could have competed in green and white, but for administrative oversight by the Athletics Federation of Nigeria (AFN).
Instead, the 28-year-old became the first American woman to win an Olympic medal in the hammer throw event.
The AFN had failed to comply with a rule which requires athletes to undergo three out-of-competition tests within a 10-month period before a major event.
Echikunwoke said she had provided her whereabouts to the AFN six times in that timeframe, but no-one came to test her in the USA.
Indeed, Echikunwoke’s story is just one amongst many of such Nigerian athletes who chose to migrate to other foreign countries for one reason or the other.
Some have had to endure and put up with such nonchalant attitude and negligence of the Sports Ministry, Athletics Federation of Nigeria, and the Nigeria Olympic Committee (NOC).
A case in point is that of Nigerian athlete Favour Ofili who expressed her disappointment and frustration after being omitted from the 100m Women’s event at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.
This unpardonable exclusion has been attributed to the negligence of both the AFN and the NOC. Ofili took to Instagram to voice her frustration.
Ofili later competed in the 200m race but ended up with a disappointing sixth place in the final.
Sports Minister, John Owan-Enoh, had pledged to implement severe actions to make amends and assuage the anger of the sports fraternity.
In a statement on his official X account, Enoh expressed strong dissatisfaction with the AFN and the NOC for their mishandling of the registration process.
Enoh criticised the negligence, declaring it unacceptable and promising that those responsible would face sanctions after a thorough investigation.
Why do Nigerian elite athletes easily accept nationality switch?
Analysts say first among the list is the search for better facilities and training opportunities. Foreign countries may offer superior training facilities, coaching, and support staff, giving athletes a competitive edge.
Unfortunately, Nigeria’s sports system faces challenges like inadequate funding, poor facilities, and administrative issues, driving athletes to seek opportunities elsewhere.
There is also the issue of financial incentives as some countries offer attractive financial packages, scholarships, or sponsorships to athletes, which can be a significant draw.
Citizenship and residency requirements are also factors as athletes may have dual citizenship or residency in another country, making it easier to represent that nation.
Last, but not lest is the Olympic eligibility rules whereby the International Olympic Committee (IOC) allows athletes to switch nationalities under certain conditions, making it possible for Nigerians to compete for other countries even after competing under green-white-green.
It’s indeed a complex issue with various factors contributing to their decisions. However, it is essential to acknowledge the athletes’ personal choices and decisions while also addressing the underlying issues in Nigeria’s sports system.
Sports Entrepreneur and Chairman Gombe State Athletics Association, Ahmed Gara-Gombe, says there is need for an overhaul starting with the sack of Sports Minister.
Gara-Gombe told NAN that Tinubu should also impose serious sanctions on the NOC President, Habu Gumel and the AFN president, Tonobok Okowa as deterrent for negligence.
“The negligence, inefficiency, and the corruption that have eaten deep into Nigerian Sports are the root cause of this.
Godwin Bamigboye, the National Coordinator of the Association of Football Administrators in Nigeria (AFAN) said the sports federations were poorly funded and managed.
Bamigboye said politics was allowed to prevail over common sense and merit in appointments to federation boards, excluding the passionate.
“The worst is the appointment of novices as sports ministers. The fault lies at the door of the Presidents since 1999.
“They use sports to reward politicians instead of appointing capable administrators. This does not need money, just wisdom.
“President Bola Tinubu can return Nigeria to its halcyon days. In the Barcelona ’92 Games, Nigeria had two finalists in the men’s and one in the women’s 100m.
“With 7.12m, Chioma Ajunwa gave Nigeria its first athletics gold at Atlanta ’96. The U23 team beat Argentina to the gold in the ’96 Games and silver medal at Beijing 2008,” he said.
NAN
