By Babs Oyetoro
Starting from July 23, hostilities will begin in top gear as athletes will be competing for honours in various events at the biggest global sporting fiesta tagged Tokyo Olympic Games 2020.

Team Nigeria, who will be represented by 52 athletes made up of 23 men and 29 women with the sole aim to better Rio 2016 Olympic Games outing where the contingent returned home empty-handed.

However, back at home, the events preceding the fiesta in Team Nigeria camp had elicited a great hope of medal prospects as some of the athletes picked up in their build-up to the global sporting fiesta.

Even the Nigeria Olympic Committee scribe, Banji Oladapo confirmed the same noting that the athletes’ performance towards the Olympics portends a good omen for Team Nigeria ahead of the Games.

Basketball
D’Tigers and D’ Tigress are carrying the burden of the continent particular the Nigerian male basketball team who happens to be the only African team in the competition.

D’ Tigers have vastly improved considerably since they were beaten by the U.S at the London 2012 Olympics. The team recorded a 90-87 victory over the same US recently to prove a point that they are ready to crush any opposition to appear on the podium.

They also dealt with Argentina winning 94-71; who is ranked 4th best team in the world. The pre-Olympic exhibition game serves as a needed tonic to turn around the Nigerian team. There is no doubt the coming of coach Mike Brown has injected life into the Nigerian basketball team that is determined to make history at the Japan Olympic Games.

The team that is the boast of eight NBA players is poised to go all the way in their bid to win medals.

D’ Tigress all along have had decent running to the Olympics Games since August 2017, they have remained unbeaten in Africa and consequently have moved from 42nd position to 14th in less than three years. They also bear hope medal finishing.

Wrestling

All eyes are on the World and commonwealth medallist-Odunayo Adekuroye and 10-time African champion Blessing Oborududu who have been seeded number two respectively in the women’s wrestling event at the Games. The duo is hugely experienced and not new in a competition of this magnitude.

The country places high hope on these female wrestlers to have a podium appearance since Nigeria has never won any medal in wrestling at the Olympic Games before.

Also, Aminat Adeniyi(62kg) and Adijat Idris(50kg) and the only Nigerian male wrestler Ekerekeme Agiomor may as well spring a surprise in their debut at the fiesta.

Badminton
Dorcas Adesokan is the African Champion competing in the singles event at the Games. It is up to him to prove to all and sundry that his continental feat is not a fluke. Also, the duo of Godwin Olufua and Anuoluwapo as African Champion will slug it out in the men’s doubles of the event at the Games. Since we are presenting the best on the continent in these events chances are that Nigeria may win some medals here not minding the colour.

Table Tennis
Hugely talented Quadri Aruna is likely to surpass the Rio Olympic feat where he shocked everybody as he played up to the quarter-final of the men’s singles to become the first African to attain this honour.

Aruna remains a golden fish at the Games and a potential foe to all the players. The country is banking on him to give us something to cheer for at the end of the day. The highest-ranked African will be making his third appearance at the games alongside compatriot and debutant Olajide Omotayo who emerged as continental champion at the 2019 African Games in Rabat, Morocco.

Old warhorse Funke Oshonaike will be making her seventh appearance at the Olympic Games. By this achievement, Oshonaike remains the first female table tennis player and African athlete in any sport to compete in seven Olympic Games. It is hopeful that Oshonaike will end up in this tournament on the podium as a parting shot for herself and the country.

Athletic
There seems to be a consensus that this is Blessing Okagbure’s moment of glory at the Olympics.

Okagbure also made an emphatic statement when she posted 10.63 seconds finish at the Sports Complex of the Yaba College of Technology to set a new Nigerian and African record and tie Jamaican Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce’s 2021 world lead.

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Okagbare says she is ready to make a legitimate claim for a sprint medal at the Olympic Games in Tokyo after becoming the joint second-fastest woman in history over 100 metres at the Nigeria Olympics Trials in Lagos.

She beat her previous best of 10.79s and made her the joint second-fastest woman of all time behind 100 metres world record holder Florence Griffith-Joyner’s 10.49s which the American set at the U.S. Olympic Trials in 1988. Jamaican sprinter Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce is the other woman to have run 10.63s

“Since the start of this season, I see myself as very ready,” she said. “I feel healthy, stronger and like the real Blessing Okagbare again. I am really happy that this time came down today; it will boost my confidence, my faith and my trust in God. I just hope this same thing happens at the Olympics.”

With this renewed vigour and confidence Okagbure will be leading the rest of the female athletes in 100m, 200m and 4 x 100m relay and Nigerian can be sure that something great is in the offing.