Paris 2024: Ogunleye, Omorodion and Other Nigerians Who Won Medals for Other Countries
- Team Nigeria officially bowed out of the Paris 2024 Olympics without winning a medal
- Medal hopefuls Blessing Oborududu and Tobi Amusan failed to capture a podium place
- However, athletes of Nigerian heritage who completed for other countries won medals
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Team Nigeria have officially concluded their Paris 2024 Olympics adventure with a total of zero medals despite 88 athletes competing in 12 different sports.
The country came close in a few sports, including freestyle wrestling, where Blessing Oborududu lost her bronze medal match, while world record holder Tobi Amusan failed to reach the final.
Source: Getty Images
However, athletes of Nigerian heritage who represented other countries won medals at the Summer Games.
Nigerians who won medals at the Olympics
1. Yemisi Ogunleye
Ogunleye was born in Germany to a European mother and a Nigerian father. She won gold for the country of her birth in shotput at the Paris 2024 Olympics, the first for the country since Astrid Kumbernuss in 1996. She identifies with the country of her birth and is proud of her Nigerian heritage.
2. Salwa Eid Naser
According to BBC Sports, she was born Ebelechukwu Antoinette Agbapuonwu in Nigeria to a Bahraini father and a Nigerian mother. She switched allegiance to Bahrain in 2014 and converted to Islam, thus changing her name to Salwa Eid Naser. She won a silver medal in the 400m in Paris.
3. Annette Echikunwoke
According to FIJ, Echikunwoke was set to represent Nigeria at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics but was ruled ineligible after the Athletics Federation of Nigeria failed to follow proper steps. She switched allegiance to the United States and won a silver medal in the hammer throw, the first American woman to win a medal in the sport.
4. Samuel Omorodion
The footballer is eligible to play for Nigeria and represented Spain in the men's football tournament. He was part of the Spanish team that won the gold medal. He missed the final match in preparation for his move from Atletico Madrid to Chelsea.
5. Rhasidat Adeleke
Adeleke was born in Dublin, Ireland, to Nigerian parents from Oyo State. She did not win a medal after finishing fifth in the women's 400m, the same race Naser won a silver medal.
Yemisi Ogunleye sang Yoruba song
Legit.ng reported that Yemisi Ogunleye sang a gospel song in the Yoruba language after winning a gold medal in the hammer throw at the Paris 2024 Olympics.
The German-Nigerian, born to a Yoruba father, a gospel artiste who can sing in multiple languages, celebrated her victory in a song.
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Source: Legit.ng
