In the all-African qualifiers, the Nigerian pair who paddled in lane three finished first and surpassed their competitors from Mozambique, Egypt, and Senegal to secure their automatic ticket.
Nigeria's duo Bello Ayomide and Otuedo Beauty have picked automatic qualification tickets to the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris for the canoeing event in the C2 W 500 category.
In the all-African qualifiers, the Nigerian pair who paddled in lane three finished first and surpassed their competitors from Mozambique, Egypt, and Senegal to secure their automatic ticket.
Saturday will mark the conclusion of the week-long African Olympic qualifying tournament, in which 16 countries are competing for just six spots.
Nigerian Canoeing assures Nigerians of a podium finish in Paris
President of the Nigerian Canoeing, Rowing, and Sailing Federation, Admiral Festus Pobeni, promised Nigerians their athletes to be on the Paris podium next year.
He added that they will focus more on training athletes that will make the country proud.
"Everything in life is about management. You manage life, you manage wealth, you manage poverty, as well as fame. In this case, we have all the talents and resources, but management is what we aspire to improve. For instance, we had our boats at the ports, and for eleven years it was difficult clearing them because there was struggle between the customs service & other Agencies until we came on board to ease some of those challenges.
"And it was then we were able to win our first silver medal at the AAG, but my concern now is that we as a country must focus more on the training athletes which I believe if we do that, we will surely finish on the podiums in Paris 2024, even though am not sure of the colours."
Admiral Pobeni appeals for support
He also requested the administration of President Bola Tinubu to persuade pertinent agencies, such as the Nigerian Inland Waterways Authority, to consistently offer the required support to promote watersports growth in Nigeria.
"And so I am really satisfied WITH the conditions here, and I think it's the same feeling for the athletes but I am surprised with the high level of performance of African athletes bc u can realise that more and more countries are competing for the Olympic qualification places which is a significant progress and huge development for the continent."
Nigeria, Egypt, South Africa, Mozambique, Senegal, Kenya, and Angola are among the sixteen countries in the Olympic qualifiers.
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