At the United World Wrestling (UWW) Ranking Series tournament, Christianah Ogunsanya claimed bronze after defeating Mongolia’s Bayanmunkh 6-6 on technical criteria to secure Nigeria’s first medal in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia.
The tournament, tagged Ulaanbaatar Open, is one of the UWW Ranking Series events and attracts top wrestlers from across the world seeking to improve their rankings and seeding points.
African wrestling champion,Ogunsanya, began her campaign impressively, defeating Mongolia’s Tsovoo Gankhuyag 10-0 by superiority, before losing 10-0 by superiority to Japan’s Kiyooka M.
Meanwhile, Commonwealth champion Mercy Genesis, narrowly missed out on a podium finish after losing 2-7 to Turkey’s Evin Demirhan.
Reacting to the performance, Nigeria’s women wrestling coach, Purity Akuh, expressed gratitude for the achievement and praised the athletes’ efforts.
“First and foremost, I give thanks to Almighty God for this medal,” Akuh said. “This medal proves that Nigeria can compete with the world’s leading wrestling nations and elite athletes. Our wrestlers have gained valuable experience from this tournament.”
“And as their coach, I have also learned important lessons. I will take the lessons home to help improve their performance and better prepare them for future competitions, particularly the 2028 Summer Olympics.”
Akuh also commended the President of the Nigeria Wrestling Federation, Adewale Adeniyi, for facilitating the team’s participation at the competition.
“I will also like to express my sincere appreciation to the President of the Nigeria Wrestling Federation, Adewale Adeniyi, for taking on this responsibility and making our participation possible,” she added.
The coach said Team Nigeria would now focus on Saturday’s events involving Esther Kolawole and Hannah Ojo, while reviewing performances from the opening day to improve the chances of securing more podium finishes.
Team Nigeria is represented by four female wrestlers at the tournament: Mercy Genesis (50kg), Christianah Ogunsanya (53kg), Esther Kolawole (62kg) and Hannah Ojo (76kg).
The Ulaanbaatar Open, the third of four UWW Ranking Series tournaments on the international wrestling calendar, began on June 4th and is scheduled to end on June 7th.
