AFN (Athletics Federation of Nigeria) president Tonobok Okowa has revealed that his board is working hard to make sure his country ends the long jinx that has troubled their team winning gold in the next Olympics. The Nigerian team last took part in the 2016 RIO Olympics, only managing to secure bronze through their men’s football team.
Nigeria took their last gold medal in the 2000 Sydney Olympic, after dominating the men’s 4×400. That was the country’s third gold in the competition’s history, with the first one coming in the 1996 Atlanta Olympics the men’s football team and long jumper Chioma Ajunwa.
Okowa revealed his optimism to press shortly after Blessing Okagbare recorded a wind-assisted lead of 10.63 seconds in a 100m race during the first day of the National trials. The trials were held at the Yaba College of Technology, Lagos and the AFN president believes his team’s performance will shock fans in Tokyo in 2022. Fortunately, you can use the 1Xbet promo code to bet on any athlete or team participating in the fast-approaching event.
While speaking to the press, Okowa said he’s very optimistic about his team’s ability to bring home some gold medals, especially on field and track events in Japan. The Nigerian team has displayed great potential since the beginning of the year and the recent display at the Yaba College of Technology strengthened the hopes of claiming gold next year. However, the AFN board will need to support its stars with morale and financial support.
Former 400m African medalist Victor Okorie is also excited that the Nigerian Olympics team is in great shape, with performances by Enoch Adegoke and Okagbare being a good sign. Okagbare is also quite optimistic about the possibility of bringing home a gold medal, following her performance in the 100 m race earlier this month. The 100m star athlete also revealed the win at the national trials will boost her confidence ahead of the Olympics and her trust in God that something will happen.
Okagbare started showing potential back in 2005 when still studying at the Yaba College of Technology. That was the same year when a Delta State polytechnic student, Otefe recorded two gold medals at the West African Polytechnics Games. That inspired the press to write a story highlighting Okagbare as Nigeria’s next Mary Onyali of the track. As a result, young Okagbare was invited to be part of the Delta Team’s trials and she dusted other athletes in the program while preparing for the 2006 Gateway National Sports Festival.