Despite not winning a medal at the recently concluded Paris 2024 Olympics in France, the Comptroller-General of Nigeria Customs Service, Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, has applauded Team Nigeria’s wrestlers for their patriotism in representing the country well up to the semi-finals and quarterfinals at the Games.
Adeniyi made the remark while hosting the athletes and their officials during the weekend in Abuja, expressing confident that the wrestlers will win medals again with the right support and environment.
He said they decided to celebrate the athletes for their efforts at the Paris 2024 Olympics despite not winning a medal to serve as reference for the younger athletes coming behind them that the federation and indeed the country will always appreciate the effort they put into any endeavour irrespective of the outcome.
“We stay together when we are happy and stay together when we are not happy. We have a very useful lesson to learn from the experience we got at the recently concluded Olympics in Paris. This reception, therefore, offers us opportunity to come together to appreciate our athletes and officials for the effort it has taken them to go this far.
“The Olympics take place in one month every four years but we know that some time it take about ten years for an athlete to prepare adequately for an Olympic.
“Our athletes and officials qualified for the Olympics which is the highest level of performance in the world, given their best and it was unfortunate that they were unable to win medals. But it is not the end of the world because we know that they have done it before and it is our believe that with the right support and environment they will do it again.
“Let me repeat again that it is not only when we win that we should have this kind of reception. We find it necessary for us to show our athletes and officials that we are indeed a federation and country that appreciate what they’ve done. We want to continue to encourage these athletes and to serve as reference for the younger ones coming behind them that the federation and indeed the country will always appreciate the effort they put into any endeavour irrespective of the outcome,” CG Adeniyi said.
Sports development minister, Senator John Owan Enoh, who was present at the reception, commended the Comptroller-General of Customs Adewale Adeniyi and president of Nigeria Wrestling Federation (NWF), Daniel Igali, for hosting the wrestling team.
He said the federation was the only and the first to celebrate their athletes despite not winning any medal at the Paris Games.
“I was surprised when I got the invitation from the CG Customs and board members of this federation about this reception.
‘It is very uplifting, motivating and reassuring ways of encouraging the athletes. I thank the CG for this, and I think that Nigerians need to know about this and am glad that the media are here,” he said.
Enoh said he found people’s negative comments toxic following the poor performance of the team Nigeria in Paris 2024 Olympic Games.
On his part, NWF President Daniel Igali, said wrestling is only the federation that won six medals at the world championship.
“We also apologise to Nigerians for not reaching the climax that we set for ourselves.
“In the past, there was no federation in Nigeria’s history that has won six world championships. It is only the wrestling federation,” Igali said.
Six wrestlers – one male and five females, represented Nigeria at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games
The wrestlers are Ogunsanya Christianah (53kg. WW), Kolawole Esther (62kg, WW), Adekuoroye Odunayo (57kg, WW), Reuben Hannah (76kg, WW), Oborududu Blessing (68kg, WW) and Mutuwa Ashton (US-based 125kg, FS).
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