The technical director of Nigeria Taekwondo Federation (NTF), Chika Chukwumerije has charged competitors in the sport to avoid ‘too much enjoyment’ during the festive season.
Sports247.ng can report that, while disclosing that registration for the 2018 Nigeria International Open has commenced, Chukwumerije added that the coming year will be very busy and pivotal for the competitions.
The Beijing 2008 Olympics bronze medalist confirmed that registration that opened on Monday will close on 20th January, Chukwumerije added that his hope is on Nigerian participants excelling.
Chukwumerije recounted that the Nigeria International Taekwondo Open was earlier slated to hold from 16th to 18th November but had to be postponed in order to accommodate more from the host country.
He is now appealing for Nigerian taekwondo athletes to avoid indulging in excessive celebrations and celebrations during the yuletide and New Year, so that their fitness levels would remain intact for the contest.
Chukwumerije revealed: “Seventy-three athletes from 10 countries had previously registered, before we had to re-schedule the event to 8th to 10th February, 2018, as were only 18 athletes from Nigeria.
“The number of Nigeria athletes who registered did not make any sense to have our first G-1 event in order for other countries to top the medal table and walk away with all those ranking points.
“We shifted it to give our Nigeria Taekwondo community time to get their GMS license and Kukkiwon certification, which are mandatory.
“If you do not have Kukkiwon certification and you intend to participate in the Nigeria Open, please contact the Technical Director.
“We implore you to keep in mind the importance of 2019 which includes the African Taekwondo Championships, the All African Games and Tokyo 2020 Olympic Qualification tournament.
“So, it might be wise to carefully balance resting and enjoying during this festive period with keeping in shape for 2019.”
