By Obi Martins Okafor.
The London Olympic Games has gone one week and yet team Nigeria has not even a bronze in our medal basket. When some countries are already counting double figures of Gold medal, Team Nigeria is still some distances away from picking up a Bronze medal.
Nigeria has participated so far in the Boxing, canoeing, Tennis and weightlifting events with medal hopefuls like segun Toriola, Funke Oshonaike and Akinyemi crashing out at the early stages in their various events.
Blessing Okagbare, who is Team Nigeria’s brightest hope for a medal at the ongoing Olympics in London will today start her chase for honours when the preliminary round of the women’s 100m sprints into action at the Olympic Stadium in Strafford.
Okagbare who will also compete in the 200m event 4x100m and Long jump events is joined by 27-year old Gloria Asumnu, who is running in the 100m, 200m and women’s 4x100m relays.
Okagbare, who in the weeks leading to the Games here, was in a chart-bursting form, winning two IAAF races to push her stake for a medal in the women s 100m against a star-studded field, comprising defending Olympic champion Shelly Ann Fraser Pryce of Jamaica (10.70), Camelita Jeter of the USA (10.81), Veronica Campbell Brown (10. 82), Kelly Ann Baptiste (10.86) and Allyson Felix of USA (10.92).
As the athletics events takes center stage today, all eyes will be on Blessing Okagbare to fill up those medal spaces in our basket.
