Edeze Sad Over Exclusion Of Wrestling
President of the Nigerian Wrestling Federation, NWF, Chief Austin Edeze, has condemned the exclusion of wrestling event at the forthcoming All Africa Games slated for September in Maputo Mozambique.
Wrestling was part of the event in the 8th and 9th All Africa Games editions hosted by Nigeria and Algeria respectively.
Edeze said the cancellation of the wrestling event by the host country will have adverse effect on the African wrestlers who have been preparing for the games in the last few years.
He blamed the organisers for giving the host country the power to cancel Wrestling event at the detriment of other Africa countries.
He insisted that such policies are not only detrimental to the growth of sports in the continent, but is dangerous, as it will hamper the development of African traditional sports like wrestling which the world admires so much.
He noted that wrestling is a sport that has been making Africa proud at both the Commonwealth Games and the Olympic Games
Edeze, however, informed that the NWF is not taking the issue lightly, saying that they have taken the matter to Confederation of the African Wrestling Federations, who are equally not happy that the wrestling event will not hold at the All Africa Games.
According to him, Nigeria is not the only country that will be affected by this alteration, Egypt, Algeria and Tunisia will equally be affected.
The president revealed that Nigeria won 21 medals in Wrestling at the last All Africa Games in Algiers in 2007, adding that Nigeria has tactically been denied 21 medals even before the commencement of the Games.
Meanwhile, the Nigeria wrestling team, who went to India for an invitational tournament recently, are back in the country.
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