The lackluster performances of Nigerian athletes at the Paris Olympics took many by surprise, allnaijadiaspora.com reports.
The athletes, ab-intio had an impressive outing but apparently retrogressed which never earned the country a modicum of glory.
Howbeit, the Minister of Sports, Senator John Enoh, labeled the team’s performance as a “disaster” and promised to ensure that such results do not occur again in the future.
Since Nigeria did not win any medals, athletes of Nigerian descent achieved success by earning medals at the Games.
Here are five athletes of Nigerian origin who won medals at the Paris 2024 Olympics:
Germany’s Yemisi Ogunleye clinched the gold medal in the women’s shot put at the Paris Olympics on Friday, securing victory with a final throw of 20.00 meters. This triumph made Ogunleye the first German to win the shot put event in 28 years, since the Atlanta 1996 Olympics.
Born in Germany to a Nigerian father from Ekiti and a German mother, Ogunleye proudly acknowledged her diverse heritage in a video trending on social media, where she also sang a Yoruba gospel song.
Annette Echikunwoke, the only athlete on this list who has represented Nigeria, chose to compete for the United States after her disqualification at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. She was prevented from participating in the hammer throw event at Tokyo 2020 because the Athletics Federation of Nigeria (AFN) failed to conduct the necessary drug tests.
The 28-year-old, who holds the African record in hammer throw, went on to win a silver medal in the women’s hammer throw at the Paris Olympics. Reflecting on her achievement, she told The Washington Post, “I’m happy it’s happening now. Everything happens for a reason, even if it’s bad or good or ugly. But this is beautiful.”
Born in Melilla, Spain, to Nigerian parents, the 20-year-old forward Samu Omorodion is reportedly set to sign with Premier League side Chelsea from Atletico Madrid, according to football transfer expert Fabrizio Romano.
Omorodion was part of the Spanish team that secured Olympic gold in men’s football after a thrilling 5-3 extra-time victory over hosts France. He scored once during the competition, in a 2-1 group stage loss to Egypt.
Nigerian-born sprinter Salwa Eid Naser won silver for Bahrain in the women’s 400m event at the 2024 Paris Olympics. She finished the race in 48.53 seconds, coming in behind Marileidy Paulino of the Dominican Republic, who set a new Olympic record with a time of 48.17 seconds.
Naser, formerly known as Ebelechukwu Agbapuonwu, was born in Onitsha, Anambra.
Bayern Munich’s new signing Michael Olise was part of the French team that won silver in men’s football at the Paris Olympics.
Olise was born in England to a Nigerian father and a French-Algerian mother. His younger brother, Richard, currently plays for Chelsea FC in England.
