The Nigeria Wrestling Federation (NWF), has announced plans to establish a training camp in Iowa State University in the US, in preparation for the forthcoming 2026 World Wrestling Championships in Astana, Kazakhstan.
A statement by the Federation in Abuja confirmed that the President of the NWF, Bashir Adeniyi, had given the nod to establish the camp in the US ahead of the World Wrestling Championships. The tournament is scheduled to hold from October 24th – 1st November.
The camp is aimed bringing together Nigerian wrestlers based in different parts of the US, providing opportunity for them to train collectively ahead of the Championship.
The statement stated that some of Nigeria’s top wrestlers currently studying in the US will have the opportunity to undergo effective training at the camp, while several home-based wrestlers with valid US visas will also join the training programme.
The NWF also added that the camp will also be opened to new talents willing to join the national wrestling team.
“Nigerian-born athletes residing in the US who are eligible and willing to represent Nigeria will have the opportunity to participate in the training programme,” NWF said in a statement.
“…Providing a platform for identifying and integrating talented wrestlers of Nigerian descent into the national team setup.”
Reacting to the development, Nigeria’s Women’s Wrestling coach Purity Akuh, thanked the federation for the initiative.
“I sincerely thank the NWF President, Adeniyi for this initiative,” Akuh said.
“Opportunities such as the Iowa training camp are important for exposing Nigerian wrestlers to world-class facilities, high-level competition, and some of the best athletes and coaches in the sport.”
