Odunayo Adekuruoye’s loss in the women’s 57kg freestyle wrestling was a rude shock to Nigerians across the globe as well as world wrestling followers as she was the top favorite to pick up gold in the event. What was even more shocking was how she has an 8-2 point lead before going on to lose and the athlete has been physically and mentally down according to reports from Tokyo.
“We all had very high hopes for Adekuoroye to medal at this Olympics. We prepared very well. Of the 16 athletes here, Adekuoroye had wrestled against about 9 of them. This is the third time she was wrestling against the Moldovan. She had destroyed her 10-0 in each of the last two contests. Within two minutes of the match this morning, Adekuoroye had already built up a healthy lead. Wrestled cautiously and tactically. Was winning 8-0 and on the verge of getting the last two points to win the match by superiority before she was reversed and pinned. It was a ‘workplace accident’ to say the least,” the Nigeria Wrestling Federation President, Daniel Ighali stated.
Understandably she is inconsolable. She feels she has disappointed a whole nation. We feel her pains. We are equally pained because over 80 percent of wrestling enthusiasts had her as the odds on favorite to pluck gold here in Tokyo. But God’s ways are not our ways.
“Rest assured that she has a loving and supportive group around her. The next 24 hours of grief are always the hardest. But we trust that She will be fine. The minister and his team, the NOC President and his team, all her teammates, the coaches, and myself are here for her. I have personally spent all afternoon with her,” he continued.
The athlete was reported to have refused to eat food as she was still in grief and disappointment from the shocking loss herself.
“She had refused food all afternoon, but we went out and got some food this evening. Heck, was even able to make her laugh this evening before she retired to seek the comfort of her bed,” Daniel Ighali said.
She was reported to have felt better after soothing words for everyone including her spiritual father Dr. Olukoya and the federation president has requested that the athlete be given time to get herself together as he knows she will be back stronger and “will likely be at her peak in Paris. I have no doubt that three years will be a blink,” he said.
“Her last words before she left my room this evening, ‘President, we should all be happy. The wrestling team won a silver medal. We all won. I won’t cry again.’ I want to take her by her words and believe that she won’t cry again. Many thanks for all the love,” he concluded.
