Igali: Wrestlers will make Nigeria proud at Africa Games
President of the Nigeria Wrestling Federation, Daniel Igali has expressed confidence that the country’s wrestlers
will once bring glory to the country at the Africa Games, even as he called for more support for the team.
In a chat with SportingLife.ng during the 3rd Governor Dickson National Wrestling Classics held at the Indoor Hall of the Samson Siasia Sports Complex, Igali said
Wrestling has been one of the highest medals winning sports for Nigeria at consecutive Continental Championships and multi-sport international engagements such as the Africa Games and the Commonwealth Games.
“At the last Africa Games in Congo Brazzaville, the wrestling team presented 23 wrestlers and won twenty medals, including 9 gold medals – comparatively one of the highest medal winning sports at the Brazzaville Games. Even at the most recent Commonwealth Games in Gold Coast Australia, wrestling was the highest medal winning a sport, presenting 12 athletes and winning 8 medals, including three gold medals.
“The Nigeria Wrestling Federation is determined, as is our usual practice, to be one of the highest medal winning teams at the Africa Games which comes up in less than two months.
“Having noted that the World Wrestling Championships in Kazakhstan is the first Olympic qualifying tournament for Tokyo, 2020 Olympics, we are equally poised to win medals and or place most of our National team wrestlers in the top 6 positions at the world championships to qualify enough of them for the Olympics next year,” Igali
Host Bayelsa emerged the overall champion of the Classics after toppling the standings in the senior category with 198pts, accrued from 8 gold, 6 silver, and 8 bronze medals.
Team Delta finished a distant second with 141 points, having won 7 gold, 7 silver, and 1 bronze medal, while highly-fancied Ondo State settled for the 3rd spot with 111pts from 6 gold, 3 silver, and 3 bronze medals.
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Edo State rounded-off their outing in 4th place with 85 points, while the Nigerian Army Wrestling Team completed the top 5 with 56 points, claiming 3 gold, 2 silver, and a bronze medal.