Paralympic Committee Nigeria (PCN) has concluded arrangements to host the country’s Paralympians to the recently concluded Paralympics held in Paris, France.
In a statement issued by the President of PCN Sunday Odebode and circulated by the body’s Public Relations Officer Niyi Alebiosu, the gala /award night will hold this Friday at the Balmoral Hall of the Sheraton Hotel & Towers in Ikeja, Lagos.
The honourable Minister of Sports Development Senator John Owan Enoh is expected to be the chief host of the event during which distinguished personalities and athletes will be honoured with awards of excellence.
Odebode further stated :“This is a project of the PCN board aimed at celebrating our athletes for their outstanding performance at the 2024 Paralympics and to say a very big thank you to them all. Also, it will help boost their morale ahead of future international competitions .
“This will encourage all other athletes to improve on their performances. We are not limiting it to those who won medals at the games but all our athletes. They have shown greatness and we have to appreciate them. This is the first time in the history of para sports and PCN and we hope to keep it going.”
He however informed that all efforts have been put in place to host a hitch free event that will mark the beginning of good fortune for para athletes in the country.
They drew majesty out of travesty with a performance credited as the best finish since debuting in the Paralympic games. After winning eight gold, two silver and two bronze medals at the Rio Paralympics held in Brazil last year, the unsung heroes and heroines had yet to be feted by the government. Five months after, some of the demoralised sportsmen battle with appalling living conditions unfit for champions. HANNAH OJO reports
On display was a stirring visage of triumph deserving of a performance described as ‘terrific and incredible’. With hands popped in the air like a pop star, Kehinde Paul warmed up to the cheering crowd in Rio, donning the green-white-green attire with pride and gusto. Paul won two gold medals at the Rio Olympics, breaking the men’s 65 kg world record in powerlifting.
Paul at Rio Paralympics
The 28-year- old, who suffered polio after an injection at the hospital as a child, had recorded winning streaks since 2009, debuting with a gold medal at a national sporting festival. He has also ranked in medals in the Common Wealth Games, All African games and the 2015 IPC Athletics World Championship held in Doha, Dubai. He was an enigma at Rio, where he broke the world record and set it twice with a 2018 KG and 220KG lift respectively.
Five months later, it was a dispirited Paul who met the reporter at the premises of the National Stadium, Surulere, Lagos. Wading through busy unpaved roads, Paul makes the long trip from Ogijo in Ikorodu to the stadium where he reports for training three times in a week.
[quote font_size=”18″ font_style=”italic” color=”#000000″ bgcolor=”#ddbc89″ bcolor=”#dd3333″]I don’t have a car. People believe that as an international athlete, I ought to have my own car and house. When they see me board a BRT bus, they tell me Nigeria is not treating me well. I am used to disregard and discrimination from people owing to my lowly status – Paul[/quote]
In the 2012 Paralympics games held in London where Nigeria placed 22nd overall among 164 participating countries whilst finishing third behind Tunisia and South Africa among African countries, former President Goodluck Jonathan hosted the winning sportsmen to a reception at the State House. Dr Jonathan also announced the conferment of the Member of the Order of Niger (MON) on six of the 2012 Paralympic gold medalists and a cash reward of N5million each.
Five silver medalists were rewarded with N3million each and two bronze medalists were rewarded with N2million; the team officials got N2.5 million each. The reception was like an elixir for the special sports athletes who, four years later, finished 17th place in the world and as number one in Africa at the Rio Paralympics. Other than their camping allowance and winning bonus, the high expectations of being received in the presidential villa has not materialised.
Seeing their fellow sportsmen from other countries post photos of cars and buildings presented by the governments of their countries has cast a bitter pill in the mouth of some of these Nigerian Paralympians, The Nation learnt. Also, the sportsmen are made to contend with the challenge of feeding and catering to their health needs since many of them do not have a steady means of income. Added to this is the fact that some of the equipment in the dimly lit training rooms for power lifters in the National Stadium complex is dilapidated.
However, patriotism still beats in the heart of some like Paul, who said: “If given an opportunity to represent another country, I won’t take it. I like my country despite the fact that they (government) treat us woefully,” he stated, revealing a funny twist of irony.
Verdant of fury
Standing at 1.25 metres height, Lauritta Onye was that special athlete who drew cheers with her acrobatic dance style when she threw an 8.40m distance to win gold in the Rio Paralympics, breaking a world record. Five months after that historic dance of victory, Onye’s spirit has been dampened as a result of an unrewarded effort.
“I am extremely angry with our government,” a bitter Onye retorts when asked to comment on her expectations from the country as a paralympic champion.
“How can I work for my country and I got no reward?” she said in askance. “I don’t have a car. I am even ashamed of myself when I walk on the street,” she lamented.
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For the 33-year- old Onye who started sports in 2008, hers is a sporting career decorated with laurels with no substance in material wealth to attest to her status as an international champion. At the Paralympics, she did not only throw an 8.40m shotput which won a gold medal, she broke a world record. Her other medal wins include a silver at the All Africa Games in Maputo in 2011. She also won a gold and silver medal at the African Championship in Tunis, Tunisia, setting a world record distance of 7.59 metres.
Onye won a gold medal at the world championship in Doha, breaking her own record by throwing a distance of 7.72 on her first attempt.
Watch 60 Seconds sorry tale of Nigerian Paralympians
It was reportedly said that the sport lady was unlucky to have missed being rewarded for the feat she achieved in Doha at the world championship because the officials could not submit her name along with those who were forwarded to President Muhammadu Buhari when he feted some winning athletes after the championship in 2015. This, no doubt, has added to her verdant of fury against the government.
When the reporter called her on phone recently, it was a sobered Onye who pleaded with the government to do the needful and stop treating special sports athletes like beggars or job seekers.
Her words: “Having to beg the government to host us to a reception is discouraging. We worked for the medals and we are asking Nigeria to show appreciation for what we have done. I have a friend from England who won bronze but the government gave her a big place which she showed on Facebook. I participated in Shot Put. I did not just win gold, I broke records but I have nothing to show for it”.
The Paralympic champion, who has also made a foray into Nollywood, disclosed that she often gets into a situation when she is not able to afford regular meals or secure a means of transportation that can convey her to the stadium for training. Expressing a ray of optimism, however, she said she looks forward to corporate bodies and telecommunications companies giving brand endorsements to special sports athletes who have brought glory to Nigeria.
In a similar fashion, Bose Omolayo, another Paralympian, who broke her own world record and set a new one of 138kg to win a gold medal in the women’s powerlifting event, is also dismayed at the endless waiting for government’s reception.
Omolayo
For the bubbly and friendly middle-aged Bose, who looked like the woman next door with her polished nails and coiffed hair, a life of immobility on a wheelchair makes her a subject of ridicule from Lagos motorists.
“Many times, I am forced to wait for long at the bus stop. Most vehicles would not want to pick someone on the wheelchair because they do not have the patience to place my wheelchair in the boot. I am left to weather the hot sun on regular occasions because I cannot boast of a car of my own even though I am a world champion,” she submitted.
‘We need festivals to survive’
Team Nigeria’s group captain to the 2016 Rio Paralympics, Lucy Ejike, in a phone conversation with the reporter, pleaded with the presidency to call for a reception for the athletes in order to encourage other physically challenged persons nursing ambition to represent Nigeria at international competitions. She also espoused corporate organisations and corporate bodies to sponsor championships and organise competitions that will give opportunities to physically challenged sportsmen.
“It is what we receive that we ingest into our system. One cannot do sports without money; it saps a lot of energy. Also, when you train from January to December without competition, it makes the sportsmen to be discouraged, especially the new ones,” she added.
Corroborating her assertion is Feyisatan Are, a prominent coach who was trained and led many Nigerian special athletes to great wins in an international competition. Coach Are disclosed that he often leaves his abode at Ikorodu by 3:30 a.m to be at the stadium by 5:30 a.m. in order to finish training by 10:30 a.m., to enable the special sports champions go search for their daily bread.
Mr Are, who disclosed that many of the Paralympians often had to start their personal training before government sponsored camps are opened, described the task as daunting.
“We manage the little resources among ourselves. If I have money, I give it to them because you cannot get the best out of a sportsman when he has not eaten. Again, the postponement of festivals is discouraging many of them because we rely on competitions to get money”.
Mr Cosmos Okoli, a former head of the Special Sports Federation of Nigeria and president of Mobility Aids and Appliances Research and Development (MAARDEC), an NGO which provides physically challenged Nigerians with mobility aids, charged the Federal Government to invest more in the result-yielding sports.
Okoli
“Special sports athletes are giving us medals and therefore, we should invest more where we are getting results. The Nigerian government should fund disabled sports better by ensuring sports facilities are accessible to them.”
In the midst of receding government revenue, he conceded that although corporate bodies can play vital roles, it behoves the government to create an enabling environment for corporate bodies to thrive.
[quote font_size=”18″ font_style=”italic” color=”#000000″ bgcolor=”#ddbc89″ bcolor=”#dd3333″]“When I was the president of the special sports body, I convinced an uncle of mine to sponsor athletes. After he spent so much money on the game, tax officials went after him and doubled his tax. Rather than encourage him for sponsoring sports, they discouraged him with higher taxes. These are some of the things working against corporate organisations investing in sports. Apart from publicity and mileage, these organisations should also be able to get preferential treatment or incentives from government”, the Ashoka fellow stated.[/quote]
Forward thinking CSR to the rescue
Can forward thinking Corporate Social Responsibility fill a gap in special sports where the government is not forthcoming? The response appears in the affirmative. Whilst it is true that Nigeria’s showing at the Olympics has not been anything less than dismal since the past two decades, special sports athletes, however, have been a redeeming factor, saving the face of the country when abled sportsmen fail to bring home medals.
More often, government and corporate bodies have supported crowd-pleasing sports like football, leaving special sportsmen with little or no encouragement. Findings by The Nation revealed that those who made it to represent Nigeria at international competitions only do some with their own determination and patriotism. Also, the condition of training appears not to favour many of them who are left at the mercy of their local coaches who are not placed on salary by the government.
Hannah Babalola, a Rio Paralympian who is an African record holder in wheelchair racing, in a chat with The Nation, testified to the validity of forward thinking CSR, having benefited from a Union Bank deal which offered support to those who went to the Olympics.
“Union Bank did what no organisation has ever done. They sponsored the whole athletes going for the Olympics with the sum of N250, 000 each. I was picked as an ambassador from the special sports athletes and my photo was displayed on their banner. If two or three corporate organisations can do what Union Bank did, I think Nigeria will be able to pick more medals in the Olympics. It is unfortunate that Nigeria is not winning more medals at the moment since we are putting all the works on government”, she opined.
As things stand, the special athletes are awaiting members of the House of Representatives who promised to donate N50,000 each as a way of appreciating the Paralympians who made Nigeria proud at the Rio games. Until then, the sad shadow casting a spell on the patriotism of these uncelebrated sports heroes and heroines may linger.
Apparently disappointed by the Federal Government’s inability to accord a befitting reception to the Paralympians for winning laurels at the Rio 2016 Paralympics, gold medallist, Lauretta Onye, may quit sport.
In spite of winning medals and hoisting the country’s flag at different international championships, Onye says she is not proud to be called a Nigerian para-athlete.
Onye told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Tuesday in Lagos that she was tired of representing the country that did not appreciate her determination and patriotism.
“I am extremely angry with sports issues in this country; it seems that the government is not concerned about what happens to athletes.
“I train without the help of the government; I attend international competitions and win medals for the country because I love Nigeria.
“But, I have had enough because there is nothing to show that my country loves me after what I have achieved. I am not proud of my country.
“When I win laurels, my name and that of Nigeria is called, the national anthem is sung and this to me is patriotism,’’ she said.
NAN reports that Onye won a gold medal at the Rio 2016 Olympics in Brazil with a throw of 8.40m, thereby becoming a world record holder in the F40 Shot put class.
She won a gold medal and the only medal for the country at the 2015 International Paralympic Committee (IPC) World Para-athletics Championships in Doha.
Onye, 32, said that people mocked her when she walked in the streets, not because of her stature but for having nothing to show for her achievements.
“As an Olympian and two-time world record holder, people tell me that I am supposed to be driving my own car, when they see me on the streets, they mock me to my face.
“Therefore, I have made up my mind to stop going for training because there is no need to continue with what is not appreciated, I cannot be wasting my time,’’ she said.
The Imo-born Achondroplasia athlete, when asked about her participation in the 2017 International Paralympics Committee (IPC) World Para-athletics Championships, said she was not interested.
“Do you know how long I have been enduring; it is not easy to go for training virtually five days in a week for a year without any assistance?
“Do you know how it feels like to be a champion who cannot boast of anything? I choose not to look at my disability by engaging myself meaningfully.
“This time, I will rather be a truck pusher than be a super star for nothing. I am not interested in participating at the 2017 IPC World Championships either,’’ she said.
NAN reports that the 2017 IPC World Para-athletics Championships are scheduled for July 14 to July 23 in London.
Achondroplasia is a short-limbed dwarfism, according to the IPC classification. Athletes are grouped under classes T40 (track events) and F40 (field events).
The maximum height of 145cm is required for male athletes and 140cm for female athlete.
If such trend continues, the country will continue to lose many of its talented athletes, thereby making it hard to win laurels at international paralympic competitions. (NAN)
As the singles event of the ongoing Nigeria Table Tennis Federation (NTTF) National Championship begins today, the tournament has continued to throw up surprises in the team events.
Already winners have emerged in the team events with focus shifting to the singles as players are eyeing the star prize of N200, 000 jackpot for the singles champions.
Also, the knockout stage of the para event began yesterday with former Paralympians aiming for the coveted trophy as well as the juicy prize money at stake.
Number one seed in the class 6-10 of the para event, Faith Obiora believes she would be unstoppable having featured at the last Rio Paralympic Games.
Also, Nick Chinedu is sure that his ambition of becoming the number para star in the men’s class 6-10 is coming close to reality.
For former national junior champion, Nurudeen Hassan, his aim is to prove his mettle against other top players.
“I am in this competition to show what I can do particularly having being part of the team to the last ITTF Africa Senior Championship held in Agadir, Morocco. The experience I garnered while playing alongside Aruna Quadri and Segun Toriola as well as Bode Abiodun. It is going to be a tall order for me but I am confident that I can be the champion in the men’s singles. I am also fascinated with how the best players across the country are competing in this championship and I just hope we can have more of this in 2017,” Hassan said.
This year’s Nigerian Sports Award witnessed dominance of nomination by Rio 2016 Paralympians with most of them making the nominees for sports man and woman of the year categories.
According to the chairman of the award panel, Ikedi Isiguzo, 11 out of the 20 categories of the award would be given out this year following the lack of nomination from the public for nine of the awards.
Isiguzo who spoke at the unveiling of all the nominees for this year’s award, said that only excellent and not popularity would be rewarded.
The Executive Director, Unmissable Incentives, Kayode Idowu unveiled Manchester City of England star, Kelechi Iheanacho, Wikki Tourists’ striker, Godwin Obaje and Rangers International star, Chisom Egbuchulam in the footballer of the year category.
For sportsman of the year, Paralympians Kehinde Paul, Ezuruike Roland and Nnamdi Innocent will compete for the gong, while five Paralympians – Omolayo Bose, Orji Josephine, Lauretta Onye, Lucy Ejike and Flora Ugwunma will jostle for laurel in the sports woman and special sports person of the year.
The trio of Kehinde Paul, Ezuruike Roland and Nnamdi Innocent will also jostle for the special sports person of the year (men).
The team of the year is between Dream IV and Rangers International while the coach of the year will be a battle among Samson Siasia, Are Feyisetan and Imama Amapakabo.
Idowu however, disclosed that there would be special recognition got six athletes who are referred to as sporting heroes. “The performances of our athletes and sports in Nigeria in
2016 has been very poor. There’s really nothing major to celebrate aside the exploits of our Paralympians. We therefore needs we have decided to add colour to the 5th edition of the award by celebrating some first in Nigerian sports at the highest level with six special recognition to be awarded during the event on December 2 at Banquet Hall, Eko Hotels & Suites, Victoria Island, Lagos,” Idowu said.
Publics are expected to vote for the sportsman and sportswomen of the year from November 8 to 27.
•N5m for each gold medalist •Falconets receive N1m each
President Goodluck Jonathan last night opened the vault and showered cash on Nigeria’s delegation to the just concluded Paralympics in London and the Falconets,the women Under-20 football team for their exploits in Japan.
The President at a special reception in honour of the Paralympics athletes and officials as well as the Falconets,gave each of the gold medalists N5million and the silver medalists N3million each.
The bronze medalists went home with N2million each while the other members of the delegation were rewarded with N500000 each.
The Falconets who placed fourth in the World women Under-20 football completion got N1million each for their effort.Their coaches got a similar amount.
The Nigerian special athletes won a total of 13 medals- six gold, five silver and two bronze medals. On the overall medals table, Team Nigeria finished 22nd position in the world and third in Africa behind Tunisia and South Africa that placed first and second respectively.
officials got N1million.
The Falconets presented a jersey with the players autograph to the president.
Speaking at the occasion, Jonathan decried the abysmal performance of Nigerian athletes at the London Olympics, describing it as a huge disappointment.
He underscored the urgent need to revamp the sporting sector to restore it to its glorious days. To achieve this, the President said government will convene a national sport retreat to address critical issues in the sector.
He said key actors in the federal and state governments, the private sector, retired and active sports men and women will participate in the retreat.
Jonathan also called on state governments to take sport seriously and engage youths in various sporting competitions with a view to catching them young.
He commended the Paralympians and Falconets for their outstanding performances and assured that government will ensure that preparation for any global sporting event starts early.
He equally noted that attention will be paid to the provision of infrastructure.
Meanwhile, Governor Rotimi Ameachi of Rivers and Sport Minister, Bolaji Abdulahi disagreed over the possible cause of the failure of the country’s team at the 2012 Olympics.
While the minister blamed indiscipline and lack of determination on the part of the athletes, the governor said it was mainly as a result of inadequate preparation.
Bolaji had noted that the difference between the Olympians and the Paralympians was the issue of high level of commitment and discipline.
But the governor disagreed with him as he noted that determination and discipline without proper preparation will always lead to failure.
He asked that the country “should not be too hard on our athletes. No matter how determined our athletes are if we don’t prepare well we would not win any medal.”
He therefore called for early preparation for the next games slated for Brazil in 2016.
Speaking on the Paralympians, Ameachi said they had comforted Nigerians with their performance – something their able bodied colleagues could not do
He used the opportunity to call on the Federal Government to pay attention on the disturbing rise in polio incidents in the country.
He said rather than increase the numbers of those on wheel chairs as a result of polio, the president should call the attention of those concerned to urgently tackle the situation.
