Finally, Team Nigeria’s hope of appearing on the Medals table at the ongoing Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games in Japan came to life as Blessing Oborodudu beats Battsetseg Soronzonbold of Team Mongolia to reach the final and guaranteed Nigeria its first medal at the ongoing Games.
Oborodudu overcame Soronzonbold 7-2 to land the first-ever medal for Nigeria in wrestling at the Olympics.
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Soronzonbold won bronze at the 2012 London Olympics and two gold medals at the 2010 and 2015 World Championships.
Oborodudu is now guaranteed gold or silver in the final and will take on 28-year-old Tamyra Mensah from the USA on Tuesday.
Mensah, who won bronze and gold at the World Championships in 2018 and 2019 respectively, beat Ukraine’s Alla Cherkasova 10-4 in the other semi-final.
Reacting, the minister of youth and sports development, Sunday Dare, who was thrilled with Oduduru’s performance, described the ‘Blessing Wrestler’ as a blessing that wiped away the pain of the near misses in other events.
He said, “This is a real Blessing to Nigeria. Thank you Blessing for wiping away the pain of the near misses recorded in other events. Nigerians are proud of you.
“The display is typical of the never say die Nigerian spirit. Keep the tempo going until we reach the ultimate which is the gold. Don’t give up the fight until you rewrite Nigerian Olympics history with a gold medal in the kitty.”