Except for the women’s basketball team, D’Tigress, who secured a historic quarterfinal berth at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games with a thrilling 79-70 victory over Canada in their final Group B match, Team Nigeria’s performances have been disappointing. The country’s athletes have been eliminated from 10 events, revealing ongoing issues with Nigeria’s sports administration.
This year’s Games have been marked by a series of underwhelming performances and administrative errors. Notably, the exclusion of national champion and medal hopeful Favour Ofili from the women’s 100m race highlights the ongoing mismanagement. As it stands, Team Nigeria’s chances of securing at least one medal are in doubt, with the team having been eliminated from multiple events due to either losses or administrative lapses.
Here’s a breakdown of the events where Nigeria’s athletes fell short:
Boxing (Men/Women): Cynthia Ogunsemilore faced provisional suspension for a banned substance ahead of her opening fight. Nigerian champion Olaitan Olaore was defeated 5-0 by Kazakhstan’s Oralbay Aibek in his opening bout, ending Nigeria’s hopes for a boxing medal.
Table Tennis (Men/Women’s Singles): Aruna Quadri and Omotayo Olajide lost their opening matches 4-3 and 4-1, respectively. In the women’s singles, Offiong Edem and Fatimo Bello were defeated 4-0, eliminating them from the competition.
Badminton: Team Nigeria’s captain, Anuoluwapo Juwon Opeyori, lost both his first and second group matches and did not advance.
Football (Women): The Super Falcons ended their campaign without a single point, losing all three Group C matches to Brazil (1-0), Spain (1-0), and Japan (3-1).
Swimming (Men/Women): Tobi Sijuade did not advance in the Men’s 50m Freestyle, finishing third in his heat. Adaku Nwandu, a 16-year-old swimmer, finished second in her heat in the women’s 50m Freestyle but did not make it to the final.
Athletics (Men/Women’s 100m): Godson Oghenebrume was absent from the men’s 100m heats despite qualification, and Favour Ofili was not registered for the women’s 100m by the Athletics Federation of Nigeria (AFN) or the Nigeria Olympic Committee. Godbless finished 6th in her heat in 11.33 seconds, while Rosemary Chukwuma placed 8th in the second semifinal.
High Jump (Women): Temitope Adeshina did not qualify for the final, finishing 9th in Group B with a jump of 1.88m.
Athletics (Mixed 4x400m): The team of Samuel Ogazi, Ella Onojuvwevwo, Ifeanyi Ojeli, and Patience Okon-George finished 4th in Heat 2 with a time of 3:11.99, setting a new national record but failing to advance to the final.
Discus (Women): Ashley Anumba, Chioma Onyekwere, and Obiageri Amaechi were eliminated after the first round.
Shot Put (Men): African champion Chukwuebuka Enekwechi finished 5th in the men’s shot put final with a throw of 21.42m, missing out on the podium.
The last time Nigeria’s national anthem was played for a gold medal at the Olympics was at Atlanta 1996, when Chioma Ajunwa won gold in the women’s long jump and the U23 men’s football team also triumphed. At Sydney 2000, Nigeria’s 4x400m relay team was initially awarded silver but was later upgraded to gold following a doping investigation that disqualified Team USA. These remain Nigeria’s only gold medals since its debut in the Olympics in 1952, with the country’s total medal count currently standing at 27.
