Duro Ikhazuagbe
Odunayo Adekuoroye’s dream of an Olympic medal evaporated in her face in an unusual manner yesterday.
Even her Nigerian Wrestling Federation Caretaker Chairman, Daniel Igali, is distraught over Adekuoroye’s failure in Tokyo 2020 yesterday.
The top Nigerian wrestler was on top of the game in the 57kg category of the women’s freestyle. She raced to 8-0 lead against her opponent, Anastasia Nichita of Moldova and was just minutes away from picking the remaining two points when the unexpected happened.
Nichita won the Round of 16 contest 8-2 through a pin down of Adekuoroye. The entire Team Nigeria contingent watching the contest were shocked beyond words. Adekuoroye could not be consoled as she cried. She felt she has let down the entire nation with the defeat. And so ended her dream of leaving Tokyo with an Olympic medal. She wanted to emulate her training partner, Blessing Oborududu who on Tuesday became the first Nigerian wrestler to win an Olympic silver medal.
How Adekuoroye allowed the Moldova wrestler pin her down for over two seconds remains a mystery. In wrestling, a pin (or fall) is when you put your opponent on his/her back with any part of both shoulders or both shoulder blades in contact with the mat for two seconds.
When you pin your opponent, the match is over and you are pronounced the winner, irrespective of the scores before that feat!
Igali who won wrestling gold medal for Canada at Sydney 2000 later yesterday admitted it will take Adekuoroye time to get over the defeat.
“Understandably, she is inconsolable. She feels she has disappointed a whole nation. We feel her pains. We are equally pained because over 80 per cent of wrestling enthusiasts had her as the odds on favourite to pluck gold here in Tokyo. But God’s ways are not our ways,” the wrestling federation boss philosophized.
Igali further stressed that the failure to progress had nothing to do with Adekuoroye’s preparations for the Games.
“We prepared very well. Of the 16 athletes here (from other countries), Adekuoroye had wrestled against about 9 of them. This is the third time she was wrestling against this Moldovan (Nichita). She had destroyed her 10-0 in each of the last two contests.
“Within two minutes of the match this morning, Adekuoroye had already built up a healthy lead. Wrestled cautiously and tactically. Was winning 8-0 and on the verge of getting the last two points to win the match by superiority before she was reversed and pinned. It was a ‘workplace accident’ to say the least,” revealed Igali who also doubles as Bayelsa State’s commissioner for sports.
He pointed out that the next couple of days will be the hardest for Adekuoroye as the picture of the Fight will keep playing out on her head.
“The next 24 hours of grief are always the hardest. But we trust that She will be fine. The Sports Minister (Sunday Dare) and his team, the NOC President, (Habu Gummel, and his team, all her teammates, the coaches and myself are here for her. I have personally spent all afternoon with her.
“She had refused food all afternoon, but we went out and got some food this evening. Heck, was even able to make her laugh this evening before she retired to seek the comfort of her bed,” Igali further stressed of the mood around the wrestler who Nigerian had pinned hope of an Olympic medal in Tokyo.
He believes Adekuoroye will be champion at the next Olympic Games in Paris in 2024.
“Delay is not Denial, Odunayo will likely be at her peak in Paris (2024 Olympics). I have no doubt that three years will be a blink,” concludes Igali.
