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Team Nigeria's Adventure to Beijing 2008

Written by Adeleke Afolayan

Saturday, 09 August 2008

The 2008 Beijing Olympics is now officially open and the keen competition for those coveted medals; the gold ones especially, is set to get more global attention than any Olympics in history.

With that in mind, athletes representing the Green and White of Nigeria have a weight of expectations on them though a cautious one no thanks to past disappointments right up to the last Olympics at Athens; a disastrous misadventure.

Off the back of a fair performance at Sydney 2000 from where we picked up three silver medals, Nigeria put up a performance so bad former President Olusegun Obasanjo famously described the two bronze medal brought back from Athens 2004 as "two golden bronze".

However, the country got it right on few occasions in the past most notably at Atlanta in 1996 where Chunwa Ajunwa won gold in her first leap of the Long Jump final before the U-23 male football team; in a most dramatic manner, won gold with a last minute goal. That famous performance would soon after earn it the nickname "Dream Team" and it is the third installment of that, Dream Team IV, currently aiming to emulate the Class of 1996.

Did Olympic glory come to Nigeria first in 1996? No. Though our maiden Olympic appearance was in Helsinki 1952, glory first came way back in the Tokyo Games of 1964 when Nojeem Mayegun won bronze in the boxing competition; now that, Baba, is a "golden bronze".

Mayegun's feat took exactly two decades to emulate through Peter Konyegwachie who picked up a silver medal from boxing as well at the Los Angele Games in 1984. A bronze medal also came through the 4x400m men's relay team led by Innocent Egbunike.

That was followed by just an edition of no medals in 1988; the year in which a most embarrasing spectacle where officials numbered more than the athletes and luggages brought on the "medalless" return home beat the contingents' number, before the run of four Games winning at least a bronze started in 1992 at Barcelona.

While 1996 is undoubtedly the peak of Nigerian sports at the Olympics, 1992 somehow is almost as memorable thanks to the celebration of the then four young girls; Mary Onyali, Tina Ihegunam, Faith Idehen and Falialat Ogunkoya, after winning bronze in the 4x100m women's relay. That was complemented with silver in the men's 4x100m relays through Davidson Ezinwa, Osmond Ezinwa, Olapade Adenekan and Oluyemi Kayode who is now in the Lord's bossom.

David Izonritei then picked a second silver medal in boxing while Richard Igbineghu got a third silver for Nigeria also in Boxing to herald a new dawn in Nigerian sport culminating at Atlanta '96.

Atlanta '96 brought a weight of expectation of perhaps, more gold medals in Sydney but that pressure along with usual firebrigade preparation saw Team Nigeria return to fatherland with three silver medals from Ruth Ogbifo in weightlifting, Gloria Anozie in the women's 100m hurdles and 4x400m men whose inspired run from fourth to second at the last stretch was rewarded with the award of the gold medal earlier won by the USA after one of the team members was found to have been on banned performance enhancing substances.

Hopefully in Beijing 2008, which by the way has the best opening ceremony by miles and consequently has given 2012 hosts London a migrain, Team Nigeria will put up a befitting performance that will not require banning drug cheats before being eligible for those medals; the golden ones that is.

Last word though, going by our once again lacklustre preparations, it would be an accident if Nigeria did win as many as the seven gold medals President Yar'Adua charged the Team to return home with...the delegation had better start crafting the medals themselves, good thing they are competing in a nation of craftsmen like China.

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Comments (3)

	1. Written by This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it on 09-08-2008 11:50 - Guest
	mr nigeria is very very rich look how many idiot nigerians are competing for other countries,shame on nigeria and their shameless administrtions,its time to be counted,even the chinese have invaded nigeria,SHAME and SHAME again

	2. Written by This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it on 26-08-2008 02:01 - Guest
	good work the Nigerian foot ball team did a very good job at the Bejin olympics, being in Australia, im so proud to call myself a Nigerian. although there might have being some flaws with the other games, but i think it was a job well done. More grease to your elbows

	3. Written by This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it on 27-08-2008 21:06 - Guest
	comment I think is high we stope making fine policy on paper and stick them permanently to the paper so many things are involved we but a starting with at least an ugly plan on it will go a long to help cos other countries have tried it and it worked for so why cant it work for us I gues we can go a long way.

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