Okpekpe Race: 6 Indigenous Athletes Share ₦8m Community Prize Fund

Six indigenous athletes from Okpekpe, the host community of the Okpekpe International 10km Road Race, have received a combined ₦8 million in prize money as part of an initiative designed to ensure the event delivers lasting benefits to the local community.

The special reward scheme, reserved exclusively for indigenous athletes, saw six runners each receive more than ₦1 million for their performances in the latest edition of the race.

Omokhagbor Sixtus, a prominent indigene of Okpekpe who has been involved with the race since its inception in 2013, described the initiative as a source of pride for the community.

“We sincerely appreciate Mike Itemuagbor, Idris Umar and Hon. Abubakar Momoh for this great initiative and for creating an opportunity that has lifted six Okpekpe athletes to millionaire status,” Sixtus said.

He added that the rewards represented more than financial incentives, describing them as evidence of the race’s growing impact on the host community.

The prize money, paid directly into the athletes’ bank accounts last week, was shared among the top three male and female indigenous runners.

James Raphael and Jessica Matthew, who won the men’s and women’s categories respectively, received ₦1.5 million each.

Innocent Odamah and Loveth Joseph, who finished second in the respective categories, collected ₦1.3 million each, while third-placed Abuke Nathaniel and Bose Etsekumhe received ₦1.2 million apiece.

It was the first time all six athletes had earned more than ₦1 million in prize money from athletics.

The community prize fund was sponsored by businessman and Dan Oil chairman Idris Umar and Minister of Niger Delta Development, Hon. Abubakar Momoh, in partnership with race promoter Mike Itemuagbor.

Itemuagbor said the initiative reflected the original vision behind the race, which was to use sport as a platform for community development, talent discovery and economic empowerment.

“The Okpekpe Road Race has always been about more than elite competition,” he said.

Now in its 11th edition, the Okpekpe International 10km Road Race has established itself as one of Africa’s leading road-running events.

It was the first road race in West Africa to have its course measured by a World Athletics-certified road race course measurer and the first in the region to receive a World Athletics Label.

The indigenous athletes’ prize fund has since become one of the race’s most distinctive legacies, ensuring that the global event continues to create opportunities for the community from which it began.