Nigeria’s Minister of Sports, John Owan Enoh, has addressed the controversy surrounding the “borrowed” bicycle used by Nigerian cyclist Ese Ukpeserai at the Paris Olympics.
Ukpeselai, the only African cyclist among the 30 competitors, sparked a social media frenzy by thanking the German team for lending him his bike as he lacked the necessary equipment. .
#Paris2024@Paris2024
I suddenly decided to participate in Keirin & Sprint, so #teamnigeria I didn’t have a bike to race on the track. In the spirit of sportsmanship, the German team @bunddeutscherradfahr helped me out by providing a bike.
Thank you 🙌🙌🙌 https://t.co/OZf8tPZ3gS pic.twitter.com/AyrtQqrCe7
— Ese lovina Ukpeseraye (@Ese_Ukpeseraye) August 8, 2024
The minister explained in a statement:
“My attention was drawn to a social media post by Mr. Ese Ukpeselai. After reading the post and the comments that followed, I took action. Mr. Ese’s post has been grossly misinterpreted But that’s probably also because the issue didn’t seem to be given the proper context.”
The minister revealed that the Nigerian team initially qualified for the bicycle road race and was fully equipped with the necessary equipment. However, two weeks ago, the International Cycling Union (UCI) reallocated additional slots to Nigeria, including the keirin and individual sprint events, which require different equipment.
My attention was drawn to a social media post by Ese Ukpeseraye. After reading the post and some follow-up comments, I took action. It seems Ese’s post was badly misunderstood, perhaps because it didn’t seem to give proper context to the issue… pic.twitter.com/zWk0wIkXV4
— Senator John Owan Enoh (@OwanEnoh) August 8, 2024
Minister of Sports Development, John Enoh.. (Photo credit: Mr. OwanEnoh’s Twitter page | https://x.com/OwanEnoh/status/1712142395058401371?s=20) “This track race has been reassigned to the Nigerian team Equipment (approved specifically for Olympic track events) will be used.After ordering and payment, delivery will take several months.Therefore, in order for Ese athletes to compete, the federation must Through the club, we collaborated with a German-owned company to obtain track bikes for the cyclists.
The minister stressed that Ukpeselai will compete in the individual sprint competition on August 9, for which he was originally eligible.
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“Tomorrow (Friday, August 9, 2024), Ese will compete in the individual sprint for which he was originally eligible.”
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Meanwhile, despite the heartbreaking and disappointing results in Paris, Nigeria’s Sports Minister insists that the players are really doing their best to make Nigeria proud, and has expressed his gratitude to the country’s players. They requested continued support.
In a post on his social media pages on Thursday, the minister highlighted some positive and ground-breaking achievements, even if they did not result in medals.
Related article: Falcons withdraw from Olympics after three consecutive losses
He wrote: Our athletes are doing their best and are proud of us. Ditigres made the country proud. There is no shame in losing to the number one team in the world rankings. They showed their presence in the quarterfinals with a score of 74-88. They became the first African team in history to advance to the quarterfinals, moving up four places in the power rankings table. we are proud of them. Their match was great.
Ese Ukpeselai was the only African cyclist among the 30 cyclists who competed in the Olympics. In the men’s 400m race, Uchenna Ogazi advanced to the final for the first time in 36 years, while Favor Ofili also ran well and showed his dexterity.
With just two days left until the Paris Olympics, many remain optimistic that the country can advance to the medal range.
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