How Team Nigeria won African Admiral Porbeni Canoe Race

By Victor Okoye

Team Nigeria won the inaugural African Admiral Porbeni Canoe Race Championships in Abuja on Sunday.

The championships began on Thursday and ended on Sunday at the Jabi Boat Club in Abuja.

The four-day event was attended by 100 athletes from five African countries, including Ghana, Senegal, Sao Tome & Principe, Togo, and host Nigeria.

Nigeria won the event with a total of 21 medals, including 14 gold, six silver, and one bronze.

Sao Tome and Principe came in second with 14 medals, including one gold, six silver, and seven bronze.

Senegal finished third with 12 medals, including one gold, three silver, and eight bronze.

The following races were run: 500m KL3 women, 200m KL3 men, 1,000m K1 men, 1,000m K1 women, 1,000m C1 men, 1,000m C1 women, 5,000m K2 men, and 200m K1 women.

Others were: 500m C2 men, 200m C1 women, 500m KL2 men, 200m KL2 men, 200m C1 men, 200m K1 men, 500m C1 women, and 500m K1 women.

Ayomide Bello of Nigeria won three gold medals in all three events she competed in, including the 1000m C1 women, 200m C1 women, and 500m C1 women.

Bello finished 13th in the 2019 World Championships in Hungary, and she also won four gold medals from four events in the Admiral Porbeni Boat Race in 2021.

Yinlayefa Godhelp, Nigeria’s youngest athlete, also won gold in two events: the 1000m K1 women and the 500m K1 women.

Godhelp, who was found only a year ago, established herself as a young phenomenon by winning the 500-metre C1 race at the National Sports Festival.

She went on to represent Nigeria at the second Africa Beach Games in Tunisia in 2023, finishing fourth in her first international competition.

Other gold medalists included Temitope Olasupo (200m and 500m KL2 men), Pere Paghamotei (200m C1 men), Blessing Amusan (200m K1 women), Ayoola Amusan/Endurance Godhelp (500m K2 men), and Joseph/Michael Moses (500m C2 men).

Team Nigeria received 3,000 dollars in prize money, while Sao Tome and Principe received 2,000 dollars and Senegal received 1,000 dollars.

Squad Nigeria captain Moses Michael expressed joy at the squad’s victory, stating that it was not an easy task despite everyone’s high hopes for the team.

“Everyone expected us to win and the team spirit was very high.

“Our sport is not like football where you see pitches everywhere where you can train. Even if you see water, you won’t easily have access to the boat.

“So, it is very difficult to train and stay fit and if somebody is out of the sport for a month or two, there is no way you can get your fitness right within a week.

“But, we thank God that we did our best and the victory for us is a very good one,” he said.

On preparation of the team for the Olympics qualifiers in November and Paris 2024, Michael stressed on the need to open training camp early for the athletes, adding that the Olympics was already around the corner.

“We have already discussed as a team about what we want and are ready to present our request to the federation president.

“We are already planning to travel to Germany for another pre-qualifying event next month, so as to enable us amass enough points before the Olympic qualifiers in November.

“We also want to appeal to the Federal Government to assist us because November is around the corner and Olympics training is expected to commence immediately.

“Some athletes in other countries start preparing for the Olympics a year ahead of the event. So, it is very important we resume camp immediately,” he said.

Dignitaries at the event were Emmanuel Ogalla, the Chief of Naval Staff and Thomas Konietzko, the President, International Canoe Federation (ICF) and and Festus Porbeni, President of the Rowing, Canoeing and Sailing Federation.

Others are Joao Afonso, the 1st Vice President of the Association of National Olympic Committees of Africa (ANOCA) and Habu Gumel, the president of the Nigeria Olympic Committee (NOC).

NAN