African Games: How Taekwondo delivered 1 gold, 5 more medals for Team Nigeria in Morocco

Taekwondo at the 12th All African Games added a total of six medals, including one gold and five bronze medals, to Team Nigeria at the just concluded Taekwondo event at the on-going 12th All African Games.

Team Captain, Chinazum Nwosu, won a Gold in the female bantamweight -53kg category on the opening day. Her male counterpart, Sunday Onofe, also won a bronze in the male middleweight -87kg alongside Benjamin Okuomose who won a bronze in the male heavyweight +87kg.

Upcoming star and All African Games debutant, Elizabeth Anyanacho, took her first major international bronze medal on the second day, while defending champion, Uzoamaka Otuadinma, lost her crown and had to settle for a bronze medal. Second timer at the All African Games, Vivian Ndu added the last bronze medal won by Team Nigeria at the Games.

The result place Nigeria on the sixth position on the Taekwondo medal table behind Morocco, Cote D’Ivoire, Egypt, Tunisia and Niger Republic.

Morocco topped the table with five gold, one silver and five bronze medals. Cote D’Ivoire came in second place with three gold, two silver and five bronze medals. Egypt came in third position with two gold, eight silver and one bronze medal. Tunisia came fourth with 2 gold, 2 silver and two bronze medals, while Niger Republic came in fifth position with two gold and one bronze medal.

The Nigeria National team, which were coached by John Victor and Alhaji Sani Lawal, had intensely trained for only six weeks prior to the All African Games.

Here are the Full Results for Team Nigeria – Taekwondo

Day 3

Commonwealth Taekwondo Gold Medallist, Nigeria’s Shola Olowookere who was to compete today did not due to a medical situation that developed on arrival in Morocco.

In the female -57kg category, Nigeria’s Helen Okoko defeats Mali’s 18 – 4 to advance to the quarterfinals, where she lost 8 – 10 to Niger Republic’s Ben Yessouf Tekiath.

In the male -74kg category, Nigeria’s Bright Paul Kolade who is the tournament’s number five ranked seed defeated Antonia Na Binhom of Guinea Bissau 39 – 4 to advance to the quarterfinals. He then lost 18 – 13 to the tournament’s number four ranked seed, Morocco’s Soufiane Elasbi

In the female -62kg category, Nigeria’s Vivian Ndu defeated DR Congo’s Naomie Katoka 21 – 2 to advance to the semi-finals, where she lost to the tournament’s number one seed, Egypt’s Rafaei Rewan, and crash out of the tournament.

Day 2

In the female welter -67kg, Elizabeth Anyanacho defeated Morocco’s Wafae El Atri in the quarterfinals before losing to Africa’s number one, Egypt’s Hedaya Wahba, 6 – 14 in the semi-finals.

In the female middle -73kg, Nigeria’s Uzoamaka Otuadinma beat Somali’s Ilhan Adam 20 – 0 in the quarterfinals before losing to the number three seed 8 – 15 to Tunisia’s Amani Layouni.

In the female heavyweight +73kg, Nigeria’s Chiamaka Onumonu defeated Mbang Esono of Equatorial Guinea 17 – 5 in the Round of 16. In the quarterfinals, she lost 14 – 18 to the tournament’s one number seed, Charlene Aminata Traore of Cote D’Ivoire

In the male fin -54kg, Nigeria’s Arinola Abdullateef beats Chad’s Goffa Bahar 26 – 5 in the Round of 16, before losing 18 – 23 to the Africa’s number one, Senegal’s Kama Moustapha in the Quarterfinals.

In the male fly -58kg, Nigeria’s Abdulfathi Sanusi defeated Congo’s Seno Piss Geoffrey 18 – 9 to advance to the quarterfinals, where he lost 8 – 10 to Cote D’Ivoire’s Issa Diakite to crash out of the tournament.

In the male bantam -63kg, Nigeria’s Ifeoluwa Ajayi defeated Burkina Faso’s Tresor Kabore 16 – 3 to advance to the Quarterfinals, before unfairly losing 20 – 30 to number four seed, Morocco’s Abdelbasset Wasfi due to very questionable refereeing, especially in the third and final round.

 Day 1

In the female -53kg category, Nigeria’s Female Team Captain, Chinazum Nwosu beat Balkissa Mossi of Niger Republic 28 – 9 in the quarterfinals. The Nigerien has earlier defeated Wangari Mwangi of Kenya to book her place with the Nigerian. Nwosu then defeated Ethiopia’s Gosaye Fikado 14 – 12 who had earlier won the number two seed, Tunisia’s Rahma Ben Ali with a golden point. In the finals, the Nigeria defeated host and number one seed, Morocco’s El Bouchti Oumaima 26 – 22.

In the male -87kg category, Nigeria’s Male Team Captain, Sunday Onofe, defeated Esende Chadrack of Democratic Republic of Congo 25 – 5 in the preliminary round of 16. He then defeated the tournament’s number four seed, Chad’s Federick Adoua 15 – 5 in the quarterfinals before losing 12 – 15 to the number one seed, Gbane Seydou of Cote D’Ivoire in the semi-finals.

In the male +87kg, Nigeria’s Benjamin Okuomose defeated Senegal’s Seye Laye 40 – 37 before crashing out 31 – 10 to current world taekwondo champion, Niger Republic’s Abdoulrazak Alfaga, to settle for a bronze medal.

Elizabeth Anyanacho display her medal

In the male -80kg category, Nigeria’s Peter Itiku defeated Kenya’s Ochieng Vincent Dock 22 – 7 to advance to the quarterfinals and crashed out 9 – 19 to Burkina Faso’s Sawadogo Faysa.

Nigeria’s Josephine Esuku defeated Kenya’s Wanjuru Njogu 30 – 8 in the preliminary round of 16 to advance to the quarterfinals where she painfully lost by superiority decision to the tournament’s number four ranked tournament seed, Michelle Tau of Lesotho, after a 5 – 5 stalemate in the normal rounds and golden point round.

Cote D’Ivoire’s Coulibaly Bouma defeated Nigeria’s Sekinat Adebayo 30 – 21 in the preliminary round of 16 to knock the Nigerian out of the competition.

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Vivian Ndu (first right) on the Bronze podium

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