The
1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta has been Nigeria’s finest outing so far
at the global competition, as the Nigerian contingent carted home two
gold, one silver and three bronze medals.
Chioma Ajunwa, who was just coming back
from a four-year drug ban and had barely trained for six months ahead of
the Games, entered the record books as the first athlete to win a gold
medal for the country when she emerged victorious in the women’s long
jump event with a jump of 7.12m on her first attempt in the final.
Till date, the police officer still
describes that outing as an act of God. “I was out of sports for four
years but after just five months of training, I won an Olympic gold. It
was an act of God,” the multi-talented ex-athlete said.
The men’s U-23 football team also claimed gold few minutes later to emerge as the first African side to achieve the feat.
On their return home, they were given a
heroic welcome by the government and their compatriots. Where are these
sportsmen and women 20 years after?
GOLD MEDALISTS
CHIOMA AJUNWA (LONG JUMP)
Ajunwa came back from a four-year drug
ban to become the first Nigerian athlete to win an Olympic gold at the
1996 Games in Atlanta, and to date remains Nigeria’s only individual
Olympic gold medalist.
During Nigeria’s 50th Independence
anniversary, President Goodluck Jonathan conferred the Golden Jubilee
Independence Awards on 50 distinguished Nigerians and friends of Nigeria
including Ajunwa.
A mother of three, she’s a Chief Superintendent of Police attached to the Police Training School, Lagos.
FOOTBALL
EMMANUEL BABAYARO
Babayaro was first choice keeper but
lost his place to Dosu Joseph in Atlanta. The 1993 U-17 World Cup
winner’s international career ended at that level. He turned to the
entertainment industry on retirement. He released his debut album Best
of Both Worlds courtesy Rectitude Records in 2010.
Last year, he was named General Manager of National League outfit Kaduna United. He owns Pioneers Academy.
CELESTINE BABAYARO
Celestine, Emmanuel’s younger sibling,
struck in the 28th minute to cancel out Claudio Lopez’s opener as
Nigeria went ahead to beat Argentina 3-2 in the final at Sanford
Stadium, Athens, and claim a first ever football gold medal, the first
by an African team.
Cele, as he is fondly called,
went on to play for Chelsea, where he won the UEFA Cup Winners Cup
(1998), UEFA Super Cup (1998) and the English FA Cup (2000), as well as
Newcastle and LA Galaxy. He was at the 1998 and 2002 World Cups and
captained the U-23 team at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney, where they
crashed out in the quarter-finals.
The left-back announced his retirement from football on July 8, 2010, and was declared bankrupt just seven months later.
TARIBO WEST
The hard-as-nails ex-defender had a
glorious club career, where he played for crosstown rivals AC Milan and
Inter, Kaiserslautern, Derby County and Partizan Belgrade. He quit the
national team in 2005 after playing at the ’98 and 2002 World Cups and
reaching the 2000 AFCON final.
He turned pastor on retirement and operates a church, Shelter in The Storm Miracle Ministries of All Nations, in Lagos.
Kanu was the golden boy of the ’96
games, grabbing three crucial goals — in the opening 1-0 win over
Hungary as well as the equaliser and winner against Brazil in the
semi-final.
He remains one of Africa’s most
decorated footballers after winning the U-17 World Cup, UEFA Champions
League, UEFA Cup, UEFA Super Cup, three FA Cups, EPL (two) and two
African Player of the Year awards amongst others.
Papilo is involved in private
business, which spreads across the hospitality industry and other
sectors. He also owns a football club, Papilo FC.
UCHE OKECHUKWU
The publicity-shy Okechukwu has largely
withdrawn from the limelight, preferring to live a quiet lifestyle since
he called it quits in the mid-2000s.
When asked recently about what he was doing on retirement from the game, Gentle Giant said, “I’m doing very well and I’m very fine but I don’t play football any more.”
The ex-Barcelona man grabbed the winner
to enter the record books as the man who handed Africa its first Olympic
gold, before injury cut short his promising career.
Amuneke has since gone into coaching,
assisting Manu Garba in 2013 as the Golden Eaglets won a fourth world
title, before leading the team to a record fifth title in Chile last
year. He was promoted as Flying Eagles coach but his side recently
crashed out of the qualifiers for the 2017 U-20 AFCON.
TIJANI BABANGIDA
TJ and some of his teammates
had an unceremonious exit from the Eagles in 2002 after a clash with
officials at the AFCON in Mali. Having played most of his career in
Holland, he called it quits in 2004 after a season at Changchun Yatai.
He works as an agent but has experience
in coaching, having led FC Taraba to a first ever appearance in the
elite domestic league. He was special assistant and liaison to ex-Eagles
coach, Sunday Oliseh.
WILSON ORUMA
Former Marseille midfielder Oruma has
been reportedly ill in recent times and has been largely out of the
scene. “Wilson has not been in contact with most of us; we learnt he has
issues with his health,” his Atlanta teammate said.
MOBI OPARAKU
Diminutive right-back Oparaku followed
1993 U-17 World Cup success with a gold in Atlanta three years later. He
featured in France ’98 but never truly made the grade at senior level.
Oparaku returned home in 2005 after
stints in Europe, US and Jamaica. Typical of a country where there is
gross disregard for its heroes, Oparaku (right) was brutalised by
policemen in Owerri 17 years after the Olympic feat.
Oparaku sustained multiple cuts to his
lips as well, with heavy bruises and blood stains all over his body,
while his clothes were torn to shreds before irate youths came to his
rescue.
ABIODUN OBAFEMI
Obafemi was involved in all the
qualifiers for Atlanta ’96 but played just a game, the team’s final
group game against Brazil, at the competition proper. Obafemi, who began
his career at Stationery Stores, played mostly in Germany featuring for
Koln, Dusseldorf, Reutlinge and Augsburg, where he retired in 2001.
He went into grassroots football
development ever since and he is the Technical Director/Head Coach of
Youth Sports Management, a Lagos-based academy reputed to have produced
players for the U-17 team and the local league.
KINGSLEY OBIEKWU
Towering centre-back Obiekwu was the
only outfield player who didn’t play a game in Atlanta despite playing a
major role in qualifying. Shagari’s ferocious long range shot
against the Egyptian U-23 team in Lagos helped knock out the North
Africans in the final game to Atlanta.
He’s gone into coaching, managing USS
Krake in Benin Republic, before returning home to coach Ingas FC of
Enugu. He was also an assistant coach of his boyhood club Rangers. He
told SUNDAY PUNCH in 2013 that he almost sold his Olympic medal because of the way the country treated its heroes.
TESLIM FATUSI
Widely-travelled Fatusi played in over
12 countries in four continents. On retirement in 2008, he returned home
but relocated to the US last year, where he now plays for Miami Dade FC
in the American Professional Soccer League alongside ex-Brazil
international Emerson.
Oliseh had an unceremonious exit from
the national team in 2002 after a fall-out with officials. He went into
coaching in Belgium before he was handed the Eagles coaching job last
year.
However, another bust-up with officials,
players and the media saw him once again quit the Eagles
unceremoniously. Oliseh is a member of the FIFA Technical Study Group,
and was assigned by the world football body to analyse the U-23 team’s
matches against Japan and Colombia in Brazil.
AUSTIN OKOCHA
Master dribbler Jay Jay doesn’t
seem to have lost the magical touch 20 years after Atlanta as he showed
during Joseph Yobo’s testimonial in May and Samuel Eto’o’s charity game
in Turkey, where he mesmerised fans with his trickery and ball juggling
theatrics.
The ex-PSG midfielder, who recently inaugurated the Jay Jay Okocha Foundation, is involved in private business.
Injuries forced The Bull into
early retirement but he had several spells as assistant coach of the
Eagles, and was part of the teams that won the 2013 AFCON and ended up
in third place at the 2014 CHAN. He was also at the 2014 World Cup. He
is presently the manager of second division Finish side JS Hercules.
DOSU JOSEPH
Dosu was the least experienced of the
three goalkeepers —Babayaro and Abiodun Baruwa, who didn’t make the
final cut — in Atlanta but he ended up as the team’s first choice
between the sticks.
And his career seemed on the rise after a
high-profile move to Italian Serie A side Reggiana immediately after
the Olympics but it came to an abrupt end after a serious car accident
in Lagos in 1997, which almost left him paralysed.
Ikpeba grabbed the second goal against
Brazil in the semi-final. He was named African Player of the Year in
1997 after a scintillating display at Monaco. He found it difficult
holding down a place in the Eagles afterwards. He is currently a pundit
with SuperSports.
Midfielder Lawal was often criticised
for not being skillful but he remains one of the most versatile and
hardworking players ever to be produced by the country. He played at the
1998 and 2002 World Cups and the 2000, 2002, 2004 and 2006.
He was appointed General Manager of Kaduna United two years ago and is presently a member of the NFF Technical Committee.
WOMEN’S 4x400M RELAY
FALILAT OGUNKOYA
Ogunkoya ran the last leg of the relay
final as Nigeria clinched a historic 4x400m silver medal. She also won a
bronze medal in the women’s 400m, behind France’s Marie-José Pérec of
France and Cathy Freeman (Australia), in a personal best and African
record of 49.10, which is currently the 12th fastest of all time.
Ogunkoya, who is the first and only
Nigerian athlete to win two medals in one Olympics, is now a board
member of the Athletic Federation of Nigeria.
FATIMA YUSUF
She ran the second leg of the final,
coming from behind to emerge in first place before handing over the
baton. Fatima, married to another retired Nigerian athlete,
AdewaleOlukoju, resides with her family in California. She’s a health
and wellness professional and mother of two kids.
BISI AFOLABI
Not much has been heard of Afolabi since she quit athletics. However, it was learnt that she resides in the US.
CHARITY OPARA
After Atlanta, Opara won silver and
bronze respectively in the Grand Prix Final in Moscow and Doha in 1998
and 2000. On retirement, she relocated to Owerri, where she was involved
in sachet water business which was allegedly closed down by the Imo
State Government due to “environmental challenges” it constituted.
MARY ONYALI (WOMEN’S 200m)
After winning bronze in the 4×100m relay at the 1992 Games, Queen of the Tracks then won the 200m bronze at Atlanta. In 2004, she became the first Nigerian to compete at five Olympics.
She was the Special Adviser (Technical) to ex-Director General of the defunct National Sports Commission, Gbenga Elegbeleye.
DUNCAN DOKIWARI (BOXING)
Dokiwari won bronze in Atlanta but never
truly lived up to his potential in the pro ranks despite his impressive
form as an amateur.
In December 2006, he won the WBC USNBC
heavyweight title with an impressive 4th round knockout of Wllie Palms
in Laughlin, Nevada. He is resident in the United States.
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