The progressive and resilient Nigerian Spirit has produced some remarkable individuals who have achieved world class awards and recognition in their various fields. Hakeem “the dream” Olajuwon, Daniel “the bull” Amokachi, Kanu Nwankwo, Samuel Peters and my personal favorite Austin “jay jay” Okocha are just a few names who have brought great honor to themselves and the entire Country, except you have been living in a an isolated cave with no access to television, newspapers and radio in the last 20 years, you must have heard these names and the great feats they have achieved.
This article however is to celebrate and redirect some of that spot light on some of the other hard working athletes in other fields. We have selected 5 Nigerian sports men from different fields who are excelling in their various sports… remember these names because a few months from now we’ll say we told you so!
Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal
King Mo as he is popularly known is a Nigerian born mixed martial artist with the UFC (that’s right we’re everywhere!). The 31 year old Kwara State origin is currently signed to mutli fight deal with the strike force organization where he is the former Strike force light Heavy weight Champion. He is a former three-time U.S Senior National Wrestling Champion with an impressive record of 103 wins and 22 losses.
Fredrick Ovie Agbaje
Frederick is a 23 year old Nigerian student Athlete based in the United States. He is a budding track a field star that will be representing Nigeria at the 2012 London Olympics. The Edo state born sprinter has been often referred to as the Nigerian Usain Bolt because of his speed and agility on the tracks. He is the recipient a silver medal for the 4 x 100 at the African Championship and a Gold medal. He also won a medal at the ECOWAS Games in the 200m race both in 2010. He currently holds the record for the ECOWAS under 23 200m.
Orseer Ikyaator
Standing at 6ft 4inch, the Benue State born basket baller (born September 9, 1989) is a point guard currently with the Lagos Islanders. He captained the Nigerian Junior basketball team and led them to the Gold hardware at the Junior Africans Nations Cup games in 2006. In 2007, Orseer and his team won a bronze medal at the All Africans Games. In 2011, he repeated that feat yet again; wining another gold medal this time with the senior national team at All African Games after defeating the African defending champions. He was an all-star at the NBA basketball without borders in South Africa in 2007. Look out for him at the London 2012 Olympics.
Chika Chukwumerije
Chika Chukwumerije (born December 30, 1983) is a male taekwondo practitioner from Abia State. First drew attention in 2003 during the qualifiers for the 2003 All-Africa Games, where he eventually won a bronze medal in the Heavyweight Male category. He qualified for the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, but lost his first bout. Nevertheless, after a period of intensive training, he became one of Nigeria’s best chances for a medal at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing. He won a gold medal at the 2007 All-Africa Games in the +80kg class and qualified for the 2008 Olympic Games soon after where he won a bronze medal. He is also training intensively for the London Olympics 2012 where he will once a again fight for Nigeria.
Ositadimma “Osi” Umenyiora
Osi (born November 16, 1981) is an American football defensive end in the National Football League for the New York Giants. Umenyiora is one of three players to have won a Super Bowl ring, joining Scott McCready and Giants teammate Lawrence Tynes. Umenyiora has been selected for the Pro Bowl twice, and holds the Giants franchise record for most sacks in one game, coming against the Philadelphia Eagles in 2007.
Source : www.manswersonline.com
