MMA: Team Nigeria Gets Heroic Welcome In Lagos
The Lagos Continental Hotel’s management honoured the Nigerian competitors who won medals in the Mixed Martial Arts competition at the 2023 African Games in Ghana on Friday.
At the 13th African Games, which are currently taking place in Ghana, mixed martial arts (MMA) made its debut as a demonstration sport. Nigeria, along with Benin Republic, Burkina Faso, Ivory Coast, Egypt, Sudan, Togo, Uganda, Libya, and hosts Ghana, topped the medal table with five gold, three silver, and one bronze medal.
At the 13th African Games, which are currently taking place in Ghana, mixed martial arts (MMA) made its debut as a demonstration sport. Nigeria, along with Benin Republic, Burkina Faso, Ivory Coast, Egypt, Sudan, Togo, Uganda, Libya, and hosts Ghana, topped the medal table with five gold, three silver, and one bronze medal.
Muzan Richard (120.5 kg), Eze Daniel (83.9 kg), Busayo Idowu (52.2 kg), Olanike Sodiq (61.2 kg), and Joy Obanla (65.8 kg) are the gold medallists.
Albert Idowu (70.3kg) is the only medallist in bronze. Blessing Karo (61.2kg), Benard Eweh (65.8kg), and Winifred Peter (47.6kg) are the silver medallists.
The nine fighters were selected among 60 athletes that took part in the national tournament which held February 18, at the Teslim Balogun Stadium, Surulere, Lagos.
In order to achieve their dreams, the fighters made a road trip of about 10 hours to Accra .
Silver medallist Idowu, who started as a boxer described her Accra experience as “worthwhile”, stressing that it has strengthened her resolve to make a name for herself in MMA.
General Manager of Continental Group Nigeria, Karl Hala, described the medallists as role models for Nigerian youths.
“We are proud of your performance in Ghana and this is another importance of sports and youth support, which we hope will bring a bright future and hope for a long and fruitful partnership with Boxing and MMA Hall of Fame (HOF),” Hala said.
General Secretary of Boxing and MMA Hall of Fame and official representative of the Global Association Of Mixed Martial Arts (GAMMA) in Nigeria, Kehinde Soyannwo also said, “Boxing and MMA Hall of Fame’s mission, as our honorable founder, Wale Edun said, is to give a chance to excel and make Nigeria proud on the World stage as amateurs and even professionals. And we are witnessing this moment of pride now.”
The Ghanaian Mixed Martial Arts Association, the host federation, is one of the 20 recognised and active member federations of the Association of African Sports Confederations (AASC), which officially recognises mixed martial arts (MMA) across Africa.
The goal of GAMMA is to have mixed martial arts recognised as a legitimate sport by the Olympic movement and be featured on the Olympic Games schedule.
