British fencer Folaemi Akinyosoe has stepped away from representing Great Britain and pledged allegiance to Nigeria.
Akinyosoe, who has been a prominent figure in British junior fencing for the past six years, made this decision at a time when fencing is gaining momentum in Nigeria.
His transfer request was also granted by British Fencing, waiving the usual three-year ban from competing.
“On behalf of British Fencing, I am writing to confirm that British Fencing has no objection to the athlete (Folaemi Akinyosoe) changing his FIE nationality and that he will be exempted from any competition ban period. ” British Fencing CEO Georgina Asher wrote in a dated acceptance letter. August 1, 2024.
The 20-year-old expressed excitement about the switch, especially regarding Nigeria’s chances of competing at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.
“I want to represent Nigeria because of my family’s roots and my personal connection to Nigeria.Therefore, I have a desire to contribute to the development of the sport in its infancy. We hope to be able to provide a unique platform to promote saber fencing and get other young Nigerians interested in the sport,” Akinyosoe said through Nigeria Fencing Media.
“I am very excited to represent Nigeria and can’t wait to work with the Nigeria Fencing Federation to take fencing to the next level,” she added.
President of the Nigeria Fencing Federation, Adeyinka Samuel, welcomed Akinyosoe’s decision, stressing its positive impact on the development of the sport of fencing in Nigeria.
“We are very excited that the work we have done over the past few years has yielded positive results with Akinyosoe’s decision to fence for Nigeria. He has once again shown that he is doing the right things to represent Nigeria and we hope he can build a strong team that will compete for a spot in the 2028 Olympic Games. , I can’t wait to interact with the other players who are already on the team,” Samuel said.
