Nigerian athletes returned home empty-handed from the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, marking the eighth time in Olympic history the country has failed to secure a medal.
The drought was sealed on Saturday when Hannah Reuben, Nigeria’s last hope, lost her second-round women’s freestyle wrestling match to Mongolia’s Davaanasan Amar Enkh.
Nigeria sent 88 athletes to compete across 12 sports in Paris. This outcome mirrors the disappointment of London 2012, where the nation also failed to secure any medals.
The country’s Olympic struggles trace back to its debut in Helsinki 1952. Similar disappointments followed in Melbourne 1956 and Rome 1960. Nigeria’s first Olympic medal came in Tokyo 1964, when Nojeem Mayegun won bronze, breaking the initial drought.
Despite this setback, there are glimmers of hope for Nigeria’s Olympic future.
The country showed improvement in athletics, with six finalists compared to four in Tokyo 2020 and two in Rio 2016.
Favour Ofili made history as the first Nigerian woman to reach the 200m final since Mary Onyali in Atlanta 1996.
Samuel Ogazi, at just 18 years old, became the first Nigerian man in the 400m final since Innocent Egbunike’s 1988 feat in Seoul.
The Long Jump event saw a historic moment with Ese Brume, Ruth Usoro, and Prestina Ochonogor all reaching the final, a first for Nigeria in a single event.
Chukwuebuka Enekwechi’s sixth-place finish in the Shot Put final was also noteworthy.
These achievements offer a foundation to build upon as Nigeria looks ahead to the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.
The road to Los Angeles 2028 begins now, with the hope that Nigeria can break its Olympic medal drought and return to the glory days of Atlanta 1996, where the country claimed two gold, one silver, and three bronze medals in its most successful Olympic outing to date.
