Experience has continued to show that sometimes big is not necessarily better. That explains why some lions go about hungry despite their sheer strength and ability to intimidate weaker animals.
The fact that it was members of Team Nigeria living with disability who succeeded in putting the country on the Medals table on Tuesday at the on-going 2018 Commonwealth Games in Gold Coast, Australia, speaks volumes.
Their able-bodied counterparts had battled for medals for four days but nothing to show for it. The four Gold medals and four Silver medals won by the Para-lympics, the special athletes, shot up Team Nigeria from bottom level to the ninth position on the overall medals table at the end of proceedings last Tuesday.
The Gold medals came from the para-powerlifting events with Roland Ezuruike, Esther Onyema, Ndidi Nwosu and Ibrahim Abdulazeez emerging tops in their various categories. The duo of Paul Kehinde and Lucy Kehinde settled for silver medals each in the men and women’s events.
It was Roland Ezuruike who set the ball rolling for gold medals in the men’s lightweight final with a lift of 224.3kg. The silver medal went to his compatriot, Kehinde, who lifted 219.9kg.
Meanwhile, about eight athletes from Cameroon are reported to be missing from the Commonwealth Games in Australia.
Three weightlifters and two boxers were initially reported to Australian police after not being seen since Tuesday, raising the suspicion they had absconded with no intention of returning to Cameroon.
Australian Border Force said they were searching for weightlifters Olivier Matam, Arcangeline Fouodji and Petit Minkoumba and boxers Ndzie Tchoyi and Simplice Fotsala after they apparently fled.
The organizers of the 21st Commonwealth Games earlier urged all visiting athletes to respect the law, mindful of the fact that more than 100 athletes overstayed their visas at the 2000 Sydney Olympics.
