More Notes On The Olympics

By Reuben Abati

President Umaru Musa Yar'adua had asked the Nigerian team at the Beijing Olympics to return home with eight gold medals. A week ago, that dream seemed impossible, but as is often the case in Nigerian affairs, we have managed on the wings of luck and sheer miracle to win three bronze medals: one each in women's 4 x 100 relay, long jump and taekwondo, and a silver medal in football won by Nigeria's well acclaimed U-23 team, the Dream Team IV, the Super Eaglets. Africa's fastest woman, our own Damola Osayomi ran the race of her life in the last lap of the women's 4 x100 relay to get Nigeria onto the medals table. In long jump, Blessing Okagbare who had placed 13th in the Heats got a place in the finals when the International Olympics Committee, which had disqualified the Ukranian athlete Lyudonila Blouska for failing a doping test , decided to give her a second chance. She jumped 6. 91 metres to place third.

The bronze in Taekwondo was also well-deserved. Chika Chukwumerije, who had defeated the defending champion in the quarter finals, went on to win the bronze in the finals. But the most memorable medal of all is the silver won by the Super Eaglets at the end of an unforgettable final football match with Argentina's U-23 football team. By 8 am, yesterday, Nigerians were already grinning. Our sudden appearance on the medals table at this year's Beijing Olympics has saved the country the agony of a completely shameful outing. But just before the final curtain is drawn on this year's Olympics, a few more notes would be in order...

All the Nigerian sportsmen and women who finally succeeded in winning "something" as Nigerians would say, deserve special commendation. It was as if they had heard the deep yearning of Nigerians for medals. Indeed, by Tuesday this week, coaches in the Nigerian camp were practically begging the athletes to try and win a medal to save our country. There were prayer sessions, night vigils...! In all, the performance of the Super Eaglets is the most remarkable. Against an Argentinian team with a better pedigree, our boys played with dignity and self-belief. They had good chances, but the Argentinian defence was impregnable and our attackers simply could not find their rhythm.

The Argentinian team soon gained an opportunity to display its talents. At exactly 7. 45 am, local time, Angel di Maria, placed on the run with a cross from Lionel Messi, lobbed a ball over the head of our on-rushing goalkeeper, Vanzekin, to put Argentina ahead and in the gold category. This was the same team that won the gold medal in the last Olympics, Athens 2004, and with its victory yesterday, Argentina is now the second country after Hungary to win the Olympic gold medal in football back to back. We lost to a better side. The Argentinians were convincing and technically outstanding. Their skilful command of football is a product of careful grooming and the elevation of football and other sports by Argentina into national projects. We got the silver, but at the award ceremony, it looked like gold. Brazil, the world's leading footballing nation had to take the bronze, queuing up behind Nigeria. Thank you, Samson Siasia.

Last week, I had suggested that Siasia should be awarded a national honour in the category of a GCON (Grand Commander Of Nigeria). Before the final match yesterday, there had been some official promise that if the Super Eaglets won the gold medal, they would be given a plot of land and a house each in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. Even with the silver medal, this promise should still be kept. In addition, the names of all the medalists at this year's Olympics should feature in the national honours list. Every year, the Nigerian government gives national honours mostly to undeserving persons, even to civil servants who have been paid, and many of whom have also paid themselves at public expense, for whatever services they rendered. The Yar'�dua government must begin to make a difference by using the National Honours List to reward Nigerians of exceptional achievement and those who have helped to strengthen the Nigerian possibility and ideal. Nigeria's Beijing medalists deserve more than the infamous handshake.

The Dream Team IV was supported by Globacom. Thank you, Globacom. There are a few companies in Nigeria which support sports, they include Mobil, Globacom, MTN, IGI, Peak Milk (Friesland Foods WAMCO), Tom Tom (Cadbury), Coca Cola, Nigerian Breweries, Nestle, Zenith Bank... but the list is rather short. Other corporate institutions should emulate the example of these socially conscious companies and help to generate the necessary momentum for releasing the great sporting potentials which abound in Nigeria. We have talented persons in this country. Yet, Nigeria was only able to participate in 10 sporting events at the Olympics: track and field, soccer, badminton, boxing, taekwondo, table tennis, wrestling, weightlifting, swimming and judo. Certainly, we must have persons who can shoot, who can move a canoe across water at great speed, young girls who can use their body for sporting gymnastics... the challenge is to find them, to nurture them, to groom them into a fine team, and to send them to the world stage to advertise the glory of the Nigerian society.

There was Team Nigeria at the Olympics, but there were other Nigerians too, all bearing names that have unmistakable links somewhere down the line with akpu, amala, iyan and edi-ka ikong, but they showed up at the Olympics wearing the colours of France, Germany, United States, Great Britain, and Portugal. To cite an instructive example, the British athlete who won the 400 metre gold medal is a certain lady known as Christine Ohuruogu. Her roots are in Nigeria. But the point in relation to Nigerian-born athletes donning foreign colours was well made by Francis Obikwelu in a moving report in the Daily Independent of Saturday, August 23, 2008 titled: "Portugal made me, not Nigeria- Obikwelu" . In the story, Obikwelu had shown clear hostility towards the country of his birth, the same country whose colours he used to wear as an athlete. Peter Edema, the correspondent noted that Obikwelu was full of venom whenever he referred to Nigeria. When a country begins to provide talents for the benefit of other countries, talents that it needs at home to realise its own objectives, it is a veritable sign that something has gone wrong with that country. It is not only athletes like Obikwelu who have fled who are angry with Nigeria, even those who are still in Nigeria are angry. It is a miracle that there wasn't a free-for-all fight in the Nigerian camp at the Olympics.

Nigeria's participation in the Beijing Olympics should be a wake up call. It should provide us an opportunity to learn certain necessary lessons, and to use these to redefine our attitudes and develop the sports sector and the public space differently. Yes, we deserve to celebrate the little that we have achieved, but as we do so, let us remember some of the extra-ordinary stories from the Olympics. American swimmer, Michael Phelps, now the greatest Olympian of all times, won eight gold medals. One man, eight gold medals! In terms of weight, that is more than all the medals won by the African countries at this year's Olympics! Africa has a population of 900 million people and yet in sports, all of us put together are unable in one Olympics to come close to one American swimming like a fish. Jamaica has Usain Bolt, the thunderbolt of a sprinter, the lightning bolt, who set world records, and was so confident, he even took time out in the course of the race to showboat. And Bolt, ,with three world records at a single Olympics, was not a single revelation from Jamaica, he and his compatriots, Asafa Powell and Tyson Gay, put their stamp on the game of athletics at this year's Olympics. Since the time of the Greeks and the Romans, sports have always been about the ability of man to excel and over-reach his potentials in a God-like fashion.

What is needed in Nigerian sports administration and sporting style is a revolution. And nothing illustrates our backwardness more than the maltreatment of Uchenna Emedolu who was chased out of the Nigerina camp for dropping the baton in the 4 x 100 men's semi-final relay race. According to one report, Nigerian athletic officials had called Emedolu aside before the semi-final race and advised him to make sure he did not drop the baton, because Nigeria needed to qualify. The allegation is that Emedolu is fond of dropping the baton, so much that his colleagues and Nigerian coaches had started suspecting him. He was said to have dropped the baton in May 2008, at the Senior African Athletics Championships in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. If the coaches did not trust Emedolu, why did they take him to the Olympics?

As it turned out, the worst happened in the semi-finals of the 4x100 race. Emedolu dropped the baton again. A panel was immediately constituted and in its report, the panel told Emedolu that "You have exhibited misconduct, dishonesty and an unpatriotic conduct during this season." He was then suspended from the Olympics village until further notice. Haba! So unsportsmanlike. The athletics coaches are wrong. Making Emedolu a scapegoat for Nigeria's failure in the 4 x 100 men's relay is malicious. Baton dropping was a major issue at this year's Olympics, and Nigeria was not the only country that was affected: Italy, South Africa, Poland, Britain and the United States also have stories to tell about dropped batons, in the case of the Us both its male and female teams dropped batons. The IAAF is already taking a look at the matter, the US is considering a study; of all the affected countries it is only Nigeria that is seeking to create and hang a scapegoat. Please leave Uchenna Emedolu alone. The problem is not with him, it is with the Nigerian system.

It is not only the coaches in Beijing that have attitude problems. The fans at home too. In the course of the semi-final football match between Nigeria and Belgium, which the Super Egalets won convicingly 4- 1, some football fans in Akute, a borderland community between Ogun and Lagos states made the match even more memorable by killing a PHCN official, one Mr Ademolu, the Marketing Manager in chrage of Ojodu. While the match was on, and the entire nation anxiously sat in front of television sets, PHCN officials had showed up in the particular area, threatening to disconnect power supply. The PHCN zonal office has since stated that its men were doing their job. But the affected persons felt that they had chosen a wrong time and occassion. One thing led to the other, a fracas ensued, in the end, the Marketing Manager lay dead. It is a most annoying incident.

The killing should be condemned to the High Heavens. Nigerian football fans tend to be too emotional, and PHCN officials like to provoke their customers. Before this tragic incident in Akute, I had only heard about the story of a certain PHCN official who wanted to disconnect power supply during a football match. All the able-bodied men in the neighbourhood rushed out to watch the PHCN official perched on the ladder, trying to cut the wires. The irate crowd that had gathered warned him not to come down if he disconnected the light. Seeing that the boys were armed with cutlasses and cudgels, the PHCN official aborted his task and came down safely. Whatever may have been teh truth in the present instance, the killers of Mr Ademolu should be apprehended and punished accordingly.

Finally, the Chinese deserve full praise for organising a colourful, absolutely impressive, almost totally hitch-free Olympics. Sports is about branding, national image and place in the world. Global respect for China has gone a notch higher, the entire nation hosted the world, and our common human heritage has been enriched. And one lesson that Nigeria can take from this is that China's success was not achived by the central government alone, but by all levels of government. To reinvent sports in Nigeria, all levels of government, federal, state and local, with the support of the private sector and civil society must wake up to the challenges of our reality.

Robot  Villager

# 1 More Notes On The Olympics By Reuben Abati P...Read the full article. Posted by Robot| 24.08.2008 05:06

dapxin  Villager

# 2 =Robot;4295087838>More Notes On The Olympics By Reuben Abati P...Read the full article. As always, sterling points by RA. sadly, na ol news be all of dem. Nnnnnnnnna! that one about Night Vigils inside the Nigerian camp get me sha. Ha ! Posted by dapxin| 24.08.2008 06:04

akuluouno  Villager

# 3 Dear RA, E doo. E dooooooooooooooooo:D:D:D. We know all you have said and they are the obvious. Nigeria's perpetual challenge has always been who will bell the cat without recourse to the typical mischief that makes us call leaders and decisons makers, maradona:twisted::twisted: rather than pundits like say the Indians who nicknamed Nehru Pandit ( from the word Pundit):idea::idea::idea: Posted by akuluouno| 24.08.2008 06:21

bobokite  Villager

# 4 E get as e de do me do me.. AFN officials are all silly. The highly rated American female team dropped Baton. Their Male dropped Baton. Jamaicans came first, second and third in the 100m female yet in the 4 X 100m relay, they dropped baton. Abeg make dem leave Emedolu alone. If tomorrow the young man begin run for Chad or Angola, dem go say he dey unpatriotic. Meanwhile, there are several sports in this Olympics that Nigeria would have won gold in if we participated. It’s just that Oyibo will give the sports one Big name wey go dey confuse us. Imagine Canoe/kayak flatwater and Canoe/kayak slalom? All this na just canoe paddling that our boys in the ND can do faster than those Oyibos even without training. See rowing, fencing, sailing and diving, Nigeria can pack all the Gold medals in those sports.. Even shooting sef? That our Korofo’s can close eye and do… abeg make we register for all these games in 2012 O! And the Night Vigil in our Camp? Person wey no read for exams dey pray to pass? Na make Angels come mark his script for am or what? Posted by bobokite| 24.08.2008 14:52

mathelize  Villager

# 5 The main things we need are: water, electricity, security and food. Men and women of many talents will always be discovered when all these are put in place. Posted by mathelize| 24.08.2008 17:00

What?  Villager

# 6 ...."Portugal made me, not Nigeria- Obikwelu" . In the story, Obikwelu had shown clear hostility towards the country of his birth, the same country whose colours he used to wear as an athlete. Peter Edema, the correspondent noted that Obikwelu was full of venom whenever he referred to Nigeria. When a country begins to provide talents for the benefit of other countries, talents that it needs at home to realise its own objectives, it is a veritable sign that something has gone wrong with that country. It is not only athletes like Obikwelu who have fled who are angry with Nigeria, even those who are still in Nigeria are angry.... It is time we realize Nigeria is not Yar Adua, PDP, NSC, NFA, or the Ministry of Sports. It is the 140 million + people. The people that taught some of these men and women, their first coaches, the other Nigerians who aided them on their arrival in their land of abode, the little boys and girls who will be inspired to do something positive with their lives when they see their "Uncles" and "Aunties" beating the odds and flying high. Most of the Kenyan runners train in other countries, yet their realize their dream was built on the achievement of Kip Keino and on the bare feet of Abebe Bikila who assaulted his feet for 26 miles to tell the world the character of the Ethiopian. It is a free world but our actions tell a story about our character, core beliefs, and grit. What story is Obikwelu telling the world? What story has Anichebe told the World about himself and his core values? It is interesting that Obikwelu, Legat, and most of the "defectors" crashed out of medal contention. The Gods of Africa are angry and maybe juju can cross oceans:wink:. Posted by What?| 24.08.2008 19:32

Godwin  Villager

# 7 American swimmer, Michael Phelps, now the greatest Olympian of all times, won eight gold medals. One man, eight gold medals! In terms of weight, that is more than all the medals won by the African countries at this year's Olympics! Africa has a population of 900 million people and yet in sports, all of us put together are unable in one Olympics to come close to one American swimming like a fish. Misinformation like the one above makes an otherwise good article sound just like a rehash of old jibes. The Gold Medal haul of Kenya & Ethiopia is actually 9. The kind of money spent to prepare athletes for the Olympic games will always make African countries to be on the back foot. India has a population bigger than Africa and yet won only 1 Gold medal and they are proud about it. Posted by Godwin| 24.08.2008 19:47

cporbeni  JJC

# 8 Are we not tired of the same talk after a bad outing in sporting events just like the Olympics? Initial shouting......... sack coach, Sack minister, a wake up cry, this, that etc etc. After 2 weeks everything returns to status quo as if nothing happened. Is sports rewarding in our country? Poor training facilities, no encouragement. After a hard days job, training in a terrible environment with obsolete stuff, you go home to darkness during which you battle with mosquitoes, manage with the noise and fumes from a privileged neighbors generating set. When it is time to sleep, you keep one eye open should the unwanted guest decide to come for their property they kept in your trust. Waking up the next morning with headaches you dash back to the stadium with the ever present traffic jam, hanging by the molue door or sandwiched in the kombi bus. On arrival at the training facility, you start the day with two akara balls or Bread and beans from a food vendor then the vicious cycle continues..... Do you expect quality performance from such an individual in any event? How can!! We need to settle the basic problems first and improve quality of life and facilities after which we can start dreaming of medals Those that managed to win the bronze and silver should be rewarded handsomely possibly given national Honors (Not OBJs handshake rubbish) for the miraculous performance. Posted by cporbeni| 24.08.2008 20:26

DeepThought  Villager

# 9 Olympics! No water, no light, armed robbers and poverty stalking the land like twin evils out of hell. If i had my way, no African country will ever go to the Olympics Posted by DeepThought| 24.08.2008 22:26

naijaninja  Villager

# 10 @Godwin, Misinformation,outright exaggeration and crass hysterics has always been the bane of reuben abati articles. he writes always in the negative when it comes to his country but the same guy will bore you with stories of how the grass is greener on the other side whenever he travels out. at times, i wonder why he has not migrated to live in one those places he writes glowingly about. well, maybe he is waiting to be invited to come and "chop" a la segun adeniyi,akin osuntokun and femi fani kayode who ,before the taming of the shrew were also as vitriolic. the question is Mr Abati,apart from your continous tirade both in the guardian newspapers and the patitos shouting gang what have YOU done for your country? you have chosen the easiest part of continually pointing out the ills ,but then you are also a part of the prioblem... The Nigerian performance at the olympic could be better but coming 61st out of 123 countries ahead of austria,ireland,south africa, singapore,malaysia and winning more medals than portugal,belgium,mexico and india is no mean feat. excelling at the olympics is no childs play it is a capital intensive project (take away the lottery funding and see wether the british could go this far) It is a collective effort and is not the sole prerogative of government but corporate bodies and individuals with wherewithal. As for old boy obikwelu( who by the way did not achieve more for portugal than what he achieved in nigeria i think he is while a nigerian i.e an olympic silver medal) i think he deserves nothing but pity for the day will soon break and he will know that "if it not panadol it can never be the same thing as panadol.... Posted by naijaninja| 25.08.2008 06:38

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