The Olympic Games are for all International
Olympic Committee accepted sports for the
games. The games are not only known for
great victories but also for large participation.
The more athletes and fans the grander. These make the difference between the
games and the World Athletics Championships
that begin today in the ancient city of Moscow
in Russia. The World Championships are not for
everybody. It is about the few best in athletics. Today, the best in track and field begin to vie
for honours in the 14th edition of the World
Championships which promises a $100,000
bonus for any athlete that breaks a world
record.
Farah, Bolt and Okagbare look to shine Jamaica’s Usain bolt broke two in Berlin in 2009
and has set himself the target of breaking one
in Moscow. He hopes to lower the 19.19
seconds he ran in Berlin where he also set an
amazing record in the 100m with 9.58 seconds,
a time he would have reduced if he didn’t start celebrating about five metres to the end. Bolt was the name at the Beijing Olympics, the
Berlin Olympics, the Daegu World
Championships, the London Olympics and will
be the name in Moscow. He is not up to 30
years but already a legend. That’s what great
performance and victory turn an athlete into. Bolt competes against the world in Moscow
where Nigeria’s Blessing Okagbare is poised to
win a medal and make up for the
disappointment of the London Olympics last
year where the whole country banked on her to
place Nigeria on the table. Blessing failed and Nigeria failed. Today, she begins the heats in the Long Jump,
an event where she won bronze in Beijing and
which she had the potential to improve on in
London. She was not well managed and she
concentrated in the sprints, performing well at
the pre-games leagues but failing when it mattered most. She has done well at the pre-
Moscow leagues even setting an African record
in London three weeks ago. She returned to the
Bradford Stadium where she placed last in the
Olympics finals and won in 10.79 seconds.
Shelly Ann Fraser, the Jamaican girl who won in Beijing and in London but who suffered a poor
start when Blessing won, according to veteran
coach, Tony Urhobo, is still the athlete to beat
in Moscow. But this is a great and perhaps the
last chance for Blessing to outpace the
Jamaican in a world event. The reason is simply what age does to athletes. Fraser won her first
Olympics gold at 16 in Beijing. She repeated
the feat in London only at 20. And in Rio she
will still be only 24 when our Blessing should be
28. To some, it may not matter. But to many,
four years are a lot in sports. But these games are not only about the 100m for Blessing. She
also features in the 200m where experts say
she even possesses greater potential because
of her slow starts in the 100m. She wins most
of her 100m races in the last ten metres. Her
start is always slow but she powers home amazingly. That’s why she is better rated to do
well in the 200m than in the 100m. But the
100m has it’s glamour and that’s largely why all
sprinters stick to it. So, Blessing will compete
in Long Jump, 100m, 200m and possibly the
4x100m relay. What an iron lady. And like she did at the London Olympics, she steps on the
tracks with the weight of the whole nation on
her shoulders. Time is no more when many Nigerians will
boast of A standard in the Olympics or World
Championships. Cast your mind back to when
Nigeria boasted the likes of Mary Onyali, Tina
Iheagwam, Falilat Ogunkoya, Beatrice Utondu,
Faith Idehe, the Aladefas, Fatima Yusuf, Rufina Uba, Charlton Ehiezulen, Bruce Ijirigo, Innocent
Egbunike, Sunday Uti, Moses Egbusien,
Olapade Adenikan, Ezinwa brothers, Henry
Amike, Yusuf Ali, Paul Emordi etc. That’s long
ago. Now, Nigeria is in Moscow with some
athletes but only one name, Blessing Okagbare. She is being backed by Delta State
government. If she wins any medal in Moscow
she will dedicate it to Dr Emmanuel Uduaghan,
the governor of Delta State who has been
backing elite athletes but with special attention
on Blessing. Blessing has promised him a medal either here in Moscow or later in Rio. But
athletes prefer to go one at a time and Moscow
is a good place for Blessing to fulfil her
promise to Uduaghan. ”I want to be quiet now. I want to concentrate. I
won’t run any other race until Moscow. I don’t
even want to talk. I just want to concentrate. I
know what Nigerians expect of me. I know how
hard I have trained and I know how hard I have
equally prayed. Everything is in the hands of God. Let’s not talk now. Let’s talk after the
events in Moscow. For now, let’s have peace,”
Blessing told this reporter in a conference talk
with Amaju Pinnick, the Delta State sports boss
who carries out the instructions of Dr
Uduaghan on athletes in the state.
Olympic Committee accepted sports for the
games. The games are not only known for
great victories but also for large participation.
The more athletes and fans the grander. These make the difference between the
games and the World Athletics Championships
that begin today in the ancient city of Moscow
in Russia. The World Championships are not for
everybody. It is about the few best in athletics. Today, the best in track and field begin to vie
for honours in the 14th edition of the World
Championships which promises a $100,000
bonus for any athlete that breaks a world
record.
Farah, Bolt and Okagbare look to shine Jamaica’s Usain bolt broke two in Berlin in 2009
and has set himself the target of breaking one
in Moscow. He hopes to lower the 19.19
seconds he ran in Berlin where he also set an
amazing record in the 100m with 9.58 seconds,
a time he would have reduced if he didn’t start celebrating about five metres to the end. Bolt was the name at the Beijing Olympics, the
Berlin Olympics, the Daegu World
Championships, the London Olympics and will
be the name in Moscow. He is not up to 30
years but already a legend. That’s what great
performance and victory turn an athlete into. Bolt competes against the world in Moscow
where Nigeria’s Blessing Okagbare is poised to
win a medal and make up for the
disappointment of the London Olympics last
year where the whole country banked on her to
place Nigeria on the table. Blessing failed and Nigeria failed. Today, she begins the heats in the Long Jump,
an event where she won bronze in Beijing and
which she had the potential to improve on in
London. She was not well managed and she
concentrated in the sprints, performing well at
the pre-games leagues but failing when it mattered most. She has done well at the pre-
Moscow leagues even setting an African record
in London three weeks ago. She returned to the
Bradford Stadium where she placed last in the
Olympics finals and won in 10.79 seconds.
Shelly Ann Fraser, the Jamaican girl who won in Beijing and in London but who suffered a poor
start when Blessing won, according to veteran
coach, Tony Urhobo, is still the athlete to beat
in Moscow. But this is a great and perhaps the
last chance for Blessing to outpace the
Jamaican in a world event. The reason is simply what age does to athletes. Fraser won her first
Olympics gold at 16 in Beijing. She repeated
the feat in London only at 20. And in Rio she
will still be only 24 when our Blessing should be
28. To some, it may not matter. But to many,
four years are a lot in sports. But these games are not only about the 100m for Blessing. She
also features in the 200m where experts say
she even possesses greater potential because
of her slow starts in the 100m. She wins most
of her 100m races in the last ten metres. Her
start is always slow but she powers home amazingly. That’s why she is better rated to do
well in the 200m than in the 100m. But the
100m has it’s glamour and that’s largely why all
sprinters stick to it. So, Blessing will compete
in Long Jump, 100m, 200m and possibly the
4x100m relay. What an iron lady. And like she did at the London Olympics, she steps on the
tracks with the weight of the whole nation on
her shoulders. Time is no more when many Nigerians will
boast of A standard in the Olympics or World
Championships. Cast your mind back to when
Nigeria boasted the likes of Mary Onyali, Tina
Iheagwam, Falilat Ogunkoya, Beatrice Utondu,
Faith Idehe, the Aladefas, Fatima Yusuf, Rufina Uba, Charlton Ehiezulen, Bruce Ijirigo, Innocent
Egbunike, Sunday Uti, Moses Egbusien,
Olapade Adenikan, Ezinwa brothers, Henry
Amike, Yusuf Ali, Paul Emordi etc. That’s long
ago. Now, Nigeria is in Moscow with some
athletes but only one name, Blessing Okagbare. She is being backed by Delta State
government. If she wins any medal in Moscow
she will dedicate it to Dr Emmanuel Uduaghan,
the governor of Delta State who has been
backing elite athletes but with special attention
on Blessing. Blessing has promised him a medal either here in Moscow or later in Rio. But
athletes prefer to go one at a time and Moscow
is a good place for Blessing to fulfil her
promise to Uduaghan. ”I want to be quiet now. I want to concentrate. I
won’t run any other race until Moscow. I don’t
even want to talk. I just want to concentrate. I
know what Nigerians expect of me. I know how
hard I have trained and I know how hard I have
equally prayed. Everything is in the hands of God. Let’s not talk now. Let’s talk after the
events in Moscow. For now, let’s have peace,”
Blessing told this reporter in a conference talk
with Amaju Pinnick, the Delta State sports boss
who carries out the instructions of Dr
Uduaghan on athletes in the state.
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