…Ebewele, Aliu Blame Woes On Lack Of Adequate Preparation, Motivation For Athletes

Barely a week after the Olympic Games flagged off in faraway Tokyo Japan, there are already telling signs that it may yet prove to be Nigeria’s worst outing in the prestigious summer games.

Sadly, the hope of Nigerians to see the country’s flag hoisted at the medals stand looks like a mirage yet again and the handwriting on the wall became obvious after a country of about 200 million population still struggled to qualify for certain events at the Olympic Games.

Following the dismal performance in London, former President Goodluck Jonathan ordered a “total and comprehensive” overhaul of the country’s sports system to restore its “past glory,” according to his then information minister,

But despite such a lofty goal, nothing has changed with the situation going from bad to worse.

Recall that the country’s football teams, Nigeria’s Under-23 also known as Dream Team, and the Super Falcons failed to qualify for the ongoing Olympic Games. The two teams were knocked out during the qualifying campaigns respectively.

Again, Nigeria’s boxing team’s inability to participate at the Games was also due to the cancellation of the 2021 World Olympic Qualifying Tournament in Paris in June, due to COVID-19 concerns. Boxing has contributed six medals (three silver and three bronze) to the country’s entire medal haul, only second to athletics (13). But it’s sad the team was not at the showpiece.

Interestingly, at the Games proper, the story has not changed as some Nigerian athletes featuring in events such as Tennis, Rowing, Badminton, Swimming, Gymnastics, Canoeing, and Taekwondo did not make it to the medal podium.

Most especially in Tennis where the team could have banked on the experiences of seven-time Olympian Funke Oshoniake, Quadri Aruna, Edem Offiong, and Olajide Omotayo.

With Athletics looking like Nigeria’s hope of winning a medal, the Athletics Integrity Unit an independent body created by World Athletics that manages all integrity issues (both doping and non-doping), dropped the heavy hammer on Nigeria as they disqualified 10 Nigerian athletes from the Games.

Although the names of the affected athletes are yet to be revealed, however, Thepledge.ng can confirm that the likes of Blessing Okagbare, Tobi Amusan, Ese Brume, Divine Oduduru, and Chukwuebuka Enekwechi were not affected. This gives Team Nigeria some glimpse of hope in terms of winning a medal.

There have been growing calls from some sections of the sports circuit calling for the resignation of the Sports Minister, Sunday Dare due to the disqualification of Nigerian athletes from the ongoing Olympics.

They claimed that Dare’s interference and dissolving all sports federation boards may have contributed to the poor outings of the athletes at the Games.

However, some experts in sports have blamed Nigeria’s poor showing in Tokyo as a result of the sports ministry’s inability to go back to the drawing board and organize clinics that can help to unearth new talents.

Veteran Athletics coach Brown Ebewele said that Nigeria’s Sports Ministry should deal with the consequences of the disqualification of 10 Nigerian athletes by the Athletics Integrity Unit which meant only 13 of the 23 names registered are eligible to compete at the Tokyo Olympics Athletics events which started last week Friday.

Ebewele in a chat with Thepledge.ng revealed that the whole process was midwifed by the ministry even when he was in charge of the training of the athletes before the training tour of the USA until he was asked to step down for raising certain questions.

“I am sad with this development considering the fact that it dashed the country’s hope of winning a medal in Tokyo. Since 10 out of our 23 athletes have been suspended, what is left for us.

Also speaking, Nigerian athlete, Blessing Okagbare is of the opinion that the sport system in Nigeria is flawed and that athletes are always at the receiving end of the damages.

“I have said it before and I will say it again. If you do not know the sport, are not passionate about it/us (the athletes), then you have no business there as an administrator. The sport system in Nigeria is so flawed and we athletes are always at the receiving end of the damages.

“They were busy fighting over power, exercising their pride over puma contract/ kits forgetting their major responsibility “THE ATHLETES”. It’s sad that this cycle keeps repeating its self and some people will come out to say I am arrogant for speaking my truth. It is my CAREER.”

However, in the early hours of Saturday, Okagbare was provisionally suspended for doping Saturday, hours before she was due to run in the semifinals of the women’s 100 meters at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.

According to the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) in a statement released on their website, Okagbare tested positive for human growth hormone in an out-of-competition test on July 19, four days before the Olympics opened, prompting a mandatory provisional suspension.

On his part, ex-Kaduna Senator, Shehu Sani offered explanation as to why 10 athletes from Nigeria were banned from the ongoing Tokyo Olympics.

Apparently piqued by the development, Sani took to twitter to write, ““Nigeria went to Tokyo with a bitterly factionalized Athletics Federation of Nigeria AFN; now we have gotten the result of that division.”

“The banning of Ten of our Athletes is utterly disappointing and disgraceful. We have washed our dirty linen in #Tokyo2020.

“[Nigeria] needs to look at what other countries that are getting medals are doing and we need to do it as well. If we don’t, we will not get to where they are,” says Seye Ogunlewe, 24. “We can’t just keep relying on prayers [and] hope, we need to put the work in as well.”

Deji Aliu, an Olympic bronze medalist, says Nigeria’s poor performance at international sporting championships is due to a lack of competitions, structure and incentives to motivate athletes.

“We used to have a lot of competitions from U16 to U20, to the classics. But now, there are no more competitions. The age grade competitions are dead. Even the so called classics, we don’t even do them anymore.

“So, that alone has really affected the morale and performance of athletes. Some athletes have probably gone into other sports or stopped altogether. For us to go back to those glorious days, we need to revive those competitions that are no more.

“I started out from secondary school games. As of today, I don’t think it’s still in existence. And this is the best avenue for you to groom athletes at that stage.

“Things have been bad for years, just that it has now gotten to the peak. Administrative wise, we are zero, management of athletes, it is also zero. Sponsorship derivation is zero. Nothing is working.”