Olufemi Akintayo
Nigeria's abysmal performance at the just concluded Olympics by is profound as none of our contingents won a medal. This should not be a surprise to any sport enthusiast in Nigeria as whoever fails to plan, plans to fail.
Right from year Nigeria started participating in the Olympics, there has never been any edition that our boxers don't come home with a medal. Unfortunately, the sport that used to be cynosure of sights had been lost to dark abyss. It neither the fault of our athlete nor the fact that we belong to the African continent, but for the sheer negligence of our sport administrators.
Nigeria locked horns with a German side in the semi final match of the men's football event in Rio. I saw our players delivered what they had learnt within the short time they spent together - why should we expect a team put together barely three months before big competition.
As a matter of fact, the German side that denied Nigeria the chance of clinching a gold or silver medal have been playing together for the past four years before the Rio tourney. Definitely not possible to compare a student who have spent four years in the university with a very brilliant jambite-there is a difference. Not to bore you with my recantations.
Sincerely, the football representatives at the Rio Olympics is considerably a good sight to every sport inclined Nigerian as they have pulled the rug from under the feet of the last doubters by making it to semi-final irrespective of the toils built around them.
Other flag bearers are directly opposite to this, but I wish to creed your indulgence as I would be making some personal assessment of each of the sports we are having Representatives.
The men's basketball team otherwise, the Afro-basketball champions had a good start to the contest as they lost narrowly to some big wigs in the basketball sport. They managed just a victory from all the matches played. A result I view as too poor for a continental champion who are expected to at least make it to the round of 16. Not to shift the blame on them, I would want to hold the sports administrators in Nigeria responsible.
Our athletes, those competing in the outdoor and indoor events, have largely disappointed and broken so many hearts. They at most times raised hopes of getting on the medal list but within a wink, they crash out. Divine Oduduru is a perfect example, having competed amongst those who have better personal bests for their seasons, like Usain Bolt and emerging second behind the world fastest man with a time difference of six seconds was enough to leave the whole world great wonders-nobody knows that was only a build up to nude failure- we took it the way it came.
Unfortunately our sport administrators are not showing remorse for contributing to woefully performance of Team Nigeria in Brazil. Argentina appeared twice in the Copa America final and lost those two times to a particular opponent, Chile. First in 2015 and the second in 2016 and would you believe what the considerate coach of the Argentine national team did-he immediately resigned his post without any pressure or expostulation coming from the citizens to him before he took the decision. That tells us he is patriotic, sympathetic, insightful and profound.
There are world leaders who resigned as a result of their incapacity and ineptitude. Nigeria is an exception as some Nigerians are calling for the replacement of the Sport Minister with John Mikel Obi; it is not as if they really want the chelseas's talisman to take over, but what they tried to drive home is that the regime of a clueless ruler could no longer be tolerated.
In conclusion, Nigeria would have fared better in the Rio Olympics had it prepared its players ahead of time. The country must start preparing for 2020 edition now for Nigeria name to appear on medal list.
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